


Snapshots

by MysteryGirl22



Series: Secrets and Lies [4]
Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: Drug Use, F/M, Family, Fun, Lighthearted, Love, some drama, teen runaway
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-13
Updated: 2019-01-31
Packaged: 2019-06-10 00:52:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 22,455
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15279984
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MysteryGirl22/pseuds/MysteryGirl22
Summary: Just a few peeks into the life of the Wildes.





	1. Vow Renewal

**Author's Note:**

> I was going to wait until I finished all of these before I started posting them, but the first two are already done and I feel like it'll be a while before the third one's ready, so I'm just going to start posting them now.

Nick tried not to fidget, swallowing hard as he waited for the large doors at the other end of the aisle to open. It hadn’t taken long to get things organized once they’d told Ben and the others they were renewing their vows; they’d even managed to book the same chapel, scheduling it for their anniversary. He looked out over the rows of pews, his mood rising even further when he saw all the faces smiling back at him, the friends and family whose happiness he wished for as much as his own. It was a cool, crisp autumn day, the early afternoon sunlight spilling in rainbow streaks through the stained glass windows, glinting off the polished brass and medals on his finely pressed dress blues. His left paw felt naked without his wedding band, but Judy had wanted it to feel as much like the original ceremony as possible, the rings having been given to their oldest son, chosen as the ring bearer.

“Will you calm down, already?” Fin whispered irritably, adjusting his own suit uncomfortably. He’d chosen the older tod as his best mammal, and despite the fennec’s complaints, Nick knew just how happy he was to have the role. “You’re acting like you never done this before!”

“I know, I know,” he murmured back, trying not to be too obvious as he messed with his tie. It felt too tight, yet too loose at the same time. “But it sure feels like I haven’t.”

Fin rolled his eyes, murmuring something about ‘sentimental bullshit’ before shoving his paws in his pockets. Nick just chuckled, but tried to do a better job of keeping still as he looked at the crowd again.

He caught his mother’s gaze, the graying vixen dabbing at her teary eyes with a handkerchief, just as she had seven years ago. It was still hard to believe it had been that long, that he’d already spent almost a decade being married to the love of his life. He cleared his throat, tugging lightly at his collar with a claw, his glance straying to the white stand next to him, one of their most important customs. It put the bride and groom at equal height, symbolizing the balance in their partnership, the names etched into the wood a reminder of those who had come before. It had been in his family for generations, though had needed an extra step added for his and Judy’s ceremony. He was careful not to get the thin, silken rope tied around his wrist caught on anything as he brought his paw back to his side, the slow wave of his tail deceptively calm as the music started, drifting down from the recessed balcony above the altar, the tall doors at the other end of the aisle finally opening.

Gypsy and Jasmine came first, tossing small pawfuls of marigold petals from their baskets, so adorable in their pale yellow flower girl dresses, proudly made by their grandmother. Judy’s bridesmaids were next, their arms linked with his grooms mammals, and he couldn’t help his pride when he saw Isabel and Mary, remembering how he and Judy had helped the troubled teen get her life back on track. She’d also recently been engaged, and he had no doubt they’d have a wedding to attend in the near future. His heart stopped when the sets of mammals parted, taking their places on either side of the altar, and he saw the vision behind Terrance, Finnick and Julian.

Judy looked even more incredible than she had all those years ago, if that were possible. Her pale cream gown had also been made by his mother, and if ever there were a perfect example of the vixen’s skill, this was it. A long, layered skirt with a delicate train, cinched in at her slim waist, the surplice neckline showing off just the right amount of her snowy fur. The fitted lace sleeves extended over the backs of her paws, held in place by narrow bands on her ring fingers. The lights overhead glinted off the beadwork, the neckline studded with the same crystals as her elegant silver tiara, designed by one of his cousins. Her veil trailed behind her, fluttering lightly around her beaming face. Her makeup was soft and demure, enhancing her natural beauty, the blush tinting her ears the perfect finishing touch. Her bouquet was a mix of white lilies and irises, symbols of good luck to both their species for centuries, passed to her maid of honor when she reached the altar.

He took her paw as she climbed the small platform beside him, the tears of joy in her eyes impossible to miss. He couldn’t stop himself from tapping his nose against hers, brushing the barest kiss across her lips before they turned to the officiate, the same gray wolf who’d done their wedding. He smiled heartily, softly clearing his throat before beginning the ceremony.

“My friends, we have gathered here today, not to celebrate the joining of two mammals, but the life they have created together, and the love they continue to share, through both the good times, and the bad,” he turned to Terry, smiling kindly when the little kit ducked behind his father’s leg. “My boy, may we have the rings, please?”

Terry’s dark pink nose twitched, soft chuckles dotting the pews when it took him a few seconds to come out. He held up the small orange pillow, his tail flicking when the wolf picked them up, giving the larger of the two to Judy.

“I promise to always be there for you,” she started, slipping it easily onto Nick’s finger, holding his paw between hers as she finished. “And to always, always love you, even if we should ever part.”

That was a fairly new tradition, having only come around in the last century or so, but was already the most common way to begin a rabbit marriage ceremony. Nick picked up the other ring from the officiate, lightly kissing the back of his wife’s delicate paw.

“I promise to always be there for you,” he copied her actions, her gleaming eyes entrancing him. “And to always, always love you, even if we should ever part.”

He briefly held his nose against hers again, taking in a breath filled with her scent, mixed with a delicate lavender perfume. The wolf nodded before opening a small, plain wood chest on the stand in front of him, taking out the first of the satin ribbons lying folded inside: a rich, earthy brown.

“Now, we shall begin the Joining of the Bands,” he let the length of it unfurl. “If the couple would please hold their left paws together.”

Nick felt tears welling in his own eyes as her ring pressed against his, one end of the ribbon now held between their palms.

“I, Judith Hopps, doth swear unto thee, Nicolas Wilde, that I shalt honor, respect and cherish thee until the end of mine days, and as far beyond as thou wilt allow me.”

She folded it across his thumb at her name, pulling up diagonally and tucking it over the other side at his, before going behind his fingers, then slanting down the back of his paw. Under his wrist, then again across the back, the other end tucked securely between their palms. The other ribbon was a dark violet, the path it took in the Joining the mirror of hers.

“I, Nicolas Wilde, doth swear unto thee, Judith Hopps, that I shalt honor, respect and cherish thee until the end of mine days, and as far beyond as thou wilt allow me.”

He barely resisted the urge to lean forward and kiss her, knowing it would be coming soon enough. The wolf closed the chest with a small click, signaling it was time for the next part of the ceremony.

“I love you, Nick,” Judy said, not taking her eyes off him. “I never realized how alone I was until I met you, and you’ve always made me feel safe, protected and wanted, and I hope to always make you feel the same.”

Nick was sure his face would freeze if he kept smiling, but he couldn’t bring himself to care.

“I love you, Judy,” he answered, brushing her cheek with the back of his free paw. “You made me believe again, in myself and our city, you trusted me, showed me just how much I was letting fear hold me back, and I’ll never be able to thank you enough for that.”

The wolf nodded again, being careful of the ribbons as he went for the white rope looped at the tod’s wrist, taking the loose end and tying it delicately around Judy’s.

“And so, with the tying of this line, these two lives, we again combine,” he stepped back. “You may kiss the bride.”

Judy sniffled, cupping her husband’s cheek, accepting his kiss eagerly. She gasped against his lips when he swept her up, giggling into it when she heard the chorus of ‘eeew!’s from their children. Applause erupted when they parted, the wolf coming forward to carefully free their paws, tucking the ribbons and rope back in the chest; it usually went to the bride’s family, to be placed in the memory book they would’ve been tasked with making. Instead, it went to Nick’s, since Judy still didn’t feel ready to contact hers after everything they had done.

“I love you,” he repeated softly, stealing one more kiss before setting her back on the platform. She sniffled, then threw her arms around his neck, lightly marking his cheek.

“I love you, Nick,” she whispered tearfully, hiccuping a bit when he marked her in return. She kept a paw in his as she stepped to the floor, both of them nearly thrown off their feet when their brood swarmed them, resulting in more laughs from almost everyone in the room.

“You said you and Mommy were already married,” Jasmine tugged on Nick’s pocket. He picked her up, pecking her forehead.

“We were,” he agreed as he set her down, kneeling to be more on level with her. “We just renewed our vows.”

“What’s that mean?” Julian asked, already lounging in Judy’s arms. He was definitely a momma’s boy. Nick smiled.

“It means we never want to forget the promise we made to each other,” he gently straightened the bow tied around Jasmine’s ear. “The promise that we’d always love and be there for each other, no matter what life throws at us.”

“Did you _have_ to kiss?” Finnick whined, making a face just at the thought. Nick tried not to laugh as his son’s namesake snorted behind him, obviously trying not to crack up.

“It’s part of the ceremony, son,” he explained. “You’ll have to do it too, when you get married.”

Finni looked horrified.

“Ew, yuck, no way!” he swiped his mouth on his sleeve. “Girls are icky!”

“Not as icky as boys are,” Jasmine argued, crossing her arms. “Boys eat snails and mud!”

“Nuh-uh!” Julian cut in, squirming to be let down. He was always quick to come to his brother’s defense. “Girls eat makeup and glitter! That’s why they’re so cranky!”

“Okay, okay, that’s enough you two,” Judy stepped in, trying not to laugh herself. She smiled slyly. “If you keep this up, there won’t be any cake left when we get to the reception hall.”

All five kits perked up at the word ‘cake’, taking off before Nick could even get back to his feet. Knowing they’d be safe as they crowded around their grandmother and ‘Big Uncle’ Adonis, he and Judy took their time following, spending their first few minutes alone since the evening before.

“It really does feel like we just got married,” he mused, grinning fondly down at her. She gently took her paw from his, taking his arm in both of hers.

“It was an amazing idea, Nick,” she said. “I’m so glad you thought of it.”

He chuckled.

“I’m sure you would’ve come up with it eventually,” he slowed to a stop once the hallway was empty. “I just beat you to it.”

She rolled her eyes, rising to her toes when he leaned in to kiss her, moaning when he once again swept her off her feet. He let the kiss linger, his tongue brushing against hers.

“We really should do this again some time,” he whispered, getting lost in the sparkle of her eyes. “Maybe when we have grandkids?”

She was even more beautiful when she smiled that way, so full of hope and joy for the future, excited for all the turns their lives still had to take.

“That sounds perfect, Nick,” she whispered back, holding her nose against his. “And I can’t wait.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I actually took the Joining of the Bands from an old Tuscan marriage tradition, when the bride and groom's hands are bound together with one ribbon, instead of two different ones like I did. Tuscany is, or at least was, a region in Italy, where Florence and Rome are located.


	2. Budding Lives

Judy leaned back against Nick’s side, his arm draped around her shoulders. They relaxed in the shade of a tree, the leaves overhead a mix of orange, brown and yellow. Another year had passed, and she couldn’t have been happier. Their children were healthy, their careers flourishing, their marriage filled with love.

 _Among other things,_ she thought mischievously, rubbing her bulging stomach. They’d decided to try for kits one last time, and after months of having almost too much fun trying, Nick had succeeded in getting her knocked up with twins. That was all they knew for sure, since his family didn’t believe in learning gender until the baby came, though it hadn’t stopped them from choosing names: Caden and Roy for boys, Camryn and Elizabeth for girls.

 _I’m actually hoping for girls this time,_ she thought, having started to feel outmatched since it was just her, Jasmine and Gypsy against the four boys in the house. She giggled, remembering the last play fight they’d all gotten into. It had taken a whole weekend to clean up all the whipped cream and pillow feathers, but it had been so much fun making the mess that she hadn’t cared. The fact she and Nick had been able to spend some quality time together because the children had been so tired that night had just been a sweet bonus.

“You’re about ready to pop,” he said above her, kissing the top of her head. “I didn’t think a bunny could even get this big.”

She rolled her eyes, elbowing him lightly in the ribs.

“And whose fault is that?” she glared playfully at him. “I’m not the one who’s almost twice my wife’s size.”

He laughed, pulling her closer as he turned his attention back to their kids. They’d spent most of the day at the park, Terry and the litter having the time of their lives on the jungle gym, recently repaired and further expanded. The new portion was connected to the castle by a sliding bar, designed to resemble an actual jungle. Finnick and Julian were starting to argue about who got to play with the wheel at the top of the ship, Terry stepping in before it got too out of paw. Jasmine and Gypsy were by the rocket, pretending their empty squirt guns were alien blasters, complete with laser sound effects.

She was jostled from a light doze by a hard kick, followed quickly by another. The twins so far had been more active then the other five combined, making her even more eager for them to finally come into the world. Not that giving birth to them would mean an end to the sleepless nights and other baby craziness, but at least she’d stop being able to sympathize with Nick’s punching bag.

 _Never thought I’d feel sorry for something_ made _to get beat up,_ she tried to stand, falling back against his chest. Being able to move without wobbling would be nice, too. He brought her chin back, kissing her tenderly before helping her to her feet.

“I can’t wait to meet them,” he whispered, then pecked her lips again. She smiled, braiding her fingers with his as she leaned against his side, thinking she’d never been happier. He called to the kids, saying it was time to pack it in, and she couldn’t stop her giggle when they griped about wanting to stay longer.

“The park closes in fifteen minutes,” he answered. “And we can always come back tomorrow!”

“You said we were going camping tomorrow!” Jasmine ran to him, laughing when he swept her up in his arms. She was definitely a daddy’s girl.

“It just sounded like you’d rather come back here,” he chuckled when Gypsy started clamoring to be picked up as well, the boys crowding around Judy.

“When’s the baby getting here, Mommy?” Finnick poked her large stomach. She ruffled his headfur, then took his paw.

“Not much longer, sweetheart,” she told him, bending slightly at another kick. “And I’m going to have two of them, remember?”

“Does that mean more brothers?” Jasmine asked, looking less than pleased at the idea. Judy giggled.

“We won’t know until they get here, Jazzi,” she said, letting go of Finni’s paw to support her stomach. The car was only a couple yards away now. “But it’s possible.”

The girl huffed.

“I hope it’s not more brothers,” she crossed her arms, slumping against Nick’s chest. She’d been upset with the boys for most of the week, after they’d used her favorite llama rag doll in a dyeing experiment. They hadn’t been able to do more than fade the cranberry juice stain, and it had ruined the toy’s watermelon scent. Trying to find a new one was proving almost impossible, since the company that had made the line of toys had gone out of business. But she knew Nick wouldn’t give up until he got one; he spoiled the kids more than she would have liked, though she knew it was because of how poor he’d been growing up. He’d made a few more investments over the years, all but one or two of them doing well. He really did have a sixth sense for business, and she was thankful they would never have to worry about money like their parents had.

_Parents…_

She almost couldn’t believe how long it had been since she’d last spoken to hers, though she had started letting the family members who’d always supported her back into her life, slow as the process was. She wondered if she ever would open the doors to the rest of them again, deciding it would just be one of those things that either happened, or it didn’t.

“Carrots?”

She blinked, looking to see the kids were all strapped in, Nick standing by the open passenger side door.

“Sorry,” she hurried as much as she could to the van, a used one they’d bought a few months after the litter had come along, taking his outstretched paw as she climbed carefully in. “Guess I’m more tired than I thought.”

“I can imagine,” he helped her buckle up, nuzzling her nose with his before sneaking another kiss. “Won’t be much longer now.”

She smiled, holding his paw to her stomach, watching his tender smile grow as he felt the twins wiggle and kick. The last nine months had been more than worth it, just to see the love shine even more brightly in his eyes. He nuzzled her cheek before shutting the door, heading around to the driver’s side.

“I hope you five are packed,” he said as he got the engine going, pausing to adjust the rearview mirror. “Aunt Erin’s gonna be waiting for you when we get home.”

Judy giggled again as the kids cheered. Erin Bogo had invited the seven of them on her family’s annual camping trip, though with her due date looming, she and Nick had had to decline. She’d been worried about the kids going without them, until she’d heard Xavier Esperanza would be tagging along as well. Not only was the young buck incredible with his “cousins”, they’d also have someone their size around, which was why Erin had decided to invite him.

 _They’ll have an amazing time,_ she smiled, watching as the sun just started to set over the city. _And they’ll be as safe as they could be._

She winced, holding her stomach again.

_Oh no…_

She reached over, grabbing Nick’s arm, his eyes widening when he saw the pain that no doubt covered her face.

“I-I think it’s time…”

* * *

Nick had lost track of how many times he’d glanced at the clock, trying to keep hold of his nerves so he wouldn’t scare the kits. By sheer luck, the next exit had led to Savanna General, and they’d managed to get Judy situated before she’d started dilating. He longed to be by her side, to comfort her through the contractions as he had the first two times, knowing his responsibility was with the rest of their brood.

“Is Mommy okay?” Julian asked, he and Finni curled up on the belly of a rhino-sized teddy bear. Nick swallowed, putting his worry behind his calm, collected mask. Now was no time to be freaking out.

“Mommy’s just fine, son,” he sat down, the girls trying to crowd into his lap. Terry was sitting against the side of the bear, his nose buried in an old illustrated copy of Little House on the Prairie he’d found on the bookshelf across the maternity ward’s waiting room. “Your little brothers or sisters just decided it was time for us to meet them.”

“I want sisters,” Gypsy tugged on his shirt as she tried to get settled. “Mommy says there aren’t enough girls in the house.”

He chuckled, kissing the top of her head.

“We’ll just have to wait and see, sweetheart,” he said, glancing at the clock on the next wall. Had it really been over three hours already?

“Nick?”

His heart fell when he saw Julia, the worried look on her striped face. He stood, setting the already dozing girls on his seat before heading over to her.

“What happened?” he asked, keeping his voice low. “Is everything okay?”

Julia glanced at the children, then knelt in front of him, leaning in close.

“I’m afraid Judy had to be taken into surgery, nothing too serious,” she added quickly, no doubt smelling the fear that had started coming off him. “But you won’t be able to have any more kits.”

Nick sighed in relief, holding a paw to his chest.

“We both agreed this would be the last pregnancy, anyway,” he assured her, letting his arm fall back to his side. “But what about the twins? Are they alright?”

She smiled.

“Your new son and daughter are just fine, Nick, except…well…”

He started getting worried again.

“Except for what?”

Instead of answering, she pulled out her phone, flicking through a few things before turning it toward him. The picture was of two tiny newborns wrapped in pink and blue, her right paw held against his left.

“They’re working to separate them now,” she went on. “It’s just their paw pads that are conjoined, so it shouldn’t be much longer, though the birth did cause some complications.”

Nick couldn’t bring himself to ask, all he cared about was that Judy and the kits would be alright.

“I’m guessing you two already have names picked out?” she pulled him back to the real world. “I can go back and tell them, since you have your paws full out here.”

He nodded, having to swallow a few times to keep himself calm. Judy was strong, and had already survived so much, a surgery like this wouldn’t be anything for her. And all the kits needed was a few small cuts and stitches, and they would be fine.

“Camryn Elizabeth,” he said, remembering the names they’d finally agreed on a few weeks before. “And Caden Roy. Um, when can we see them?”

Julia tapped the names in her notes app, then stuck her phone back in her pocket.

“I’m afraid it won’t be until morning, they all have to recover from the anesthesia.”

“Right,” he’d figured that would be the case, but he’d still had to ask. He looked back at the kids, seeing even Terry had started dozing off, the book lying open in his lap as he leaned heavily against the stuffed bear, Jun and Finni passed out on its stomach, the girls not far behind.

“I can call Erin to come get them,” Julia offered. “I’m sure I could find somewhere you could stay until morning.”

He thought a moment, then figured there wouldn’t be any point in all of them staying in the waiting area, since there was no telling when Judy would actually be cleared for visitors. It would be better for her and the twins to have a few days to recover before having to deal with the rest of their hyper brood.

“I’d really appreciate that, Julia,” he smiled up at her, his own exhaustion starting to tug at him, now that he knew everyone was safe. “Thank you.”

She smiled back, then got to her feet.

“Just doing my job, Wilde.”

* * *

Camryn was almost the spitting image of Judy, aside from her white ear tips and dark nose, just like Gypsy’s and Finni’s. Caden, somehow, had ended up solid white, his long muzzle hiding a dark tongue and mouth, a recessive trait from Nick’s father’s family. His short rounded ears and long, fluffy tail made him look almost like an arctic fox kit.

“That was certainly the craziest one yet,” Judy said, smiling down at the little treasures. Nick chuckled, leaning back in the uncomfortable chair to stretch. He’d ended up spending the night in an empty mourning room, curled up on a giant throw pillow, and was still working out the resulting kinks.

“You all made it through, though,” he answered, leaning against the bed’s safety rail again. The two kits were smaller than Terry had been, though not quite as much as the litter. He nuzzled her temple, slipping a careful arm beneath them as they eagerly nursed. “That’s what’s important.”

She sighed in contentment, her nose starting to twitch in frustration when she couldn’t manage to angle her head to kiss him. He solved the problem by taking control of it himself, his tongue gently brushing hers before he pulled away.

“The rest of the kids went with Erin last night,” he informed her. “I thought it’d be better for you three to recover a bit before they piled on you.”

She laughed a little, settling back against her oversized pillow.

“It’s probably for the best, since I had to deal with more than just giving birth this time,” she dragged in a breath, Caden quietly squeaking before latching on again. “I’m just glad we’d already decided to stop having kids after this.”

He nodded, wishing he could just climb into the bed beside her, but he didn’t want to risk jostling her so soon after the surgery, especially with the suckling newborns still laying in her arms.

“That’s exactly what I told Julia when she came out to tell me last night,” he said, brushing a soft finger across the back of Camryn’s head. “The kids were already falling asleep by then.”

She smiled.

“I’m not surprised, they played for hours yesterday,” she winced a bit when she shifted. “The next few weeks are going to be _so_ much fun…”

He chuckled again, nuzzling the top of her head.

“At least Terry and the others are all in school now,” he said. “And they have that nursery and daycare at the precinct now.”

She smiled, at least those were two expenses they wouldn’t have to worry about. Nick helped clean the twins when they finished eating, laying them in their clear plastic bassinet. Their tiny paws had been gloved, both to keep them from accidentally scratching themselves with their claws, and to help protect their bandaged stitches. Hearing how they’d been conjoined had made him remember a story his grandmother had told him, how she’d known a set of twins who’d been born the same way, that they’d had one of the closest bonds she’d ever seen between two mammals. He couldn’t help but wonder if it would ring true for them as well.

“Thank you, Nick.”

He blinked, focusing back on Judy, who smiled tiredly up at him.

“For what?”

Her smile grew, and she reached out to cup his face, pulling him closer to her.

“Just for everything,” she kissed him warmly, his tail flicking when her breath brushed his nose. “I feel like I don’t say it enough.”

He kissed her back, smoothing a paw over her cheek.

“You don’t have to say it,” he assured her quietly. “Because you never stop showing it, and I promise that I never will, either.”

He marked her, hiding the grimace at his sore back when he had to bend further to let her do the same.

“Sounds like your old age is catching up with you, sweetheart,” she teased as she released him. He rolled his eyes, nipping her ear before straightening.

“It’ll happen to you soon enough, Fluff,” he returned. “You’re not that far behind me.”

She giggled.

“But you forget, I’ve always been a lot more limber than you are,” she smirked at him. “Don’t you remember how you were almost stiff as a board before I started training you for the academy?”

It was hard to forget, especially since she hadn’t stopped giving him crap about being too sore to move the first couple weeks. It hadn’t quite been that bad, but that hadn’t stopped him from playing it up, if it had meant seeing her laugh. And his bruised ego had been more than worth it at the end, when he’d made it to the top of his class. All thanks to a certain dumb bunny.

“I wish I could say I can’t believe it took so long to realize I was in love with you,” she went on, hiding a small yawn with her paw. “But I hadn’t even really known what love was before then.”

“And I was too scared to make a move,” he added, remembering the many nights he’d spent fantasizing about her at the academy. It had been the perfect way to forget his sore body, and to sooth his aching heart, at least for a while. He sighed. “I still wish I’d just blurted it out before I left, like I’d planned to.”

She looked at him.

“Why didn’t you?”

He shrugged.

“I had no idea how you felt, and I didn’t want to risk making things awkward before we’d even had a chance to work together, even if you would’ve had nine months to think about it after,” he looked away, his ears going red. “And I knew if I did tell you, especially if you’d felt the same way, I never would’ve been able to focus, because I would’ve only been able to think about getting back to you.”

She winced again as she pushed herself up, not wanting to waste time looking for the button that would prop up the bed.

“I’m sure I would’ve felt the same way, Nick,” she said, her own blush rising. “And I still wish I’d had the courage to tell you at your graduation, like I’d planned to.”

He chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Guess we were both kind of chickens back then, huh?” he leaned forward until his nose touched hers, taking her paw in his. “But I’m so happy we both finally worked up the courage, because I don’t think I would’ve been able to go on without you.”

She sniffled, wiping her eyes before she kissed him again, throwing every ounce of emotion she could behind it.

“I love you, Nick,” she said when it ended. “More than my own life, and I want nothing more than to spend the rest of it with you.”

He hugged her tightly, letting his own tears trickle freely.

“I love you so much, Judy,” he said, his voice slightly choked. “And I plan on spending the rest of mine proving it to you.”


	3. Teen Trouble III

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was hoping all three of these would be light and fluffy, with little, if any angst or drama, but this one decided it was gonna go down a dark path...
> 
> I'm going to post it one scene at a time here, since I already feel like I've left you all hanging for too long already, but I won't be adding it to FF, DA or the other site I post on until it's finished.

“What the hell were you thinking, Julian?” Nick demanded, glaring down at his son. The teen didn’t answer, his ears flopped back, his mismatched blue and brown eyes glued to the floor. It was the second time that month he’d been caught out after curfew, this time by Chief Tony Anderson himself. The change in behavior was fairly recent, and Nick was sure it had to do with Jun’s new girlfriend, whom he and Judy still hadn’t met. “We’ve already talked to you about this.”

Julian scoffed, shoving past him as he stormed to the room he shared with Finnick and Caden, Terrance having gone off to college. Nick grabbed his shoulder, turning him back around.

“It’s bad enough you’re staying out late,” he continued firmly. “But now your grades are slipping, and this morning I learn you’ve been cutting class. What do you have to say for yourself?”

Julian glared at him, shoving his paw away.

“School’s pointless, anyway,” he argued. “All they teach us is how to be mindless drones!”

He ran off, Nick catching the bedroom door when he tried to slam it shut.

“I’ll agree they don’t teach a lot of what they should,” he pushed it open. “But that doesn’t mean you can just stop going, especially when you still live under this roof.”

He scoffed again, dropping on his bed, the lower of the bunk he shared with Fin, Caden’s race car bed sitting against the other wall. It was the same setup as the girls’ room next door, aside from Camryn’s car being blue instead of green. Nick sighed, sitting next to him and taking his shoulder again.

“Look, son, your mother and I only get on your case about this because we want you to succeed, and like it or not, you can’t do that without at least a high school diploma.”

Julian didn’t answer, instead falling over and landing face first on his pillow. Nick chuckled, remembering how he had started that habit in kindergarten. It had been the kit’s favorite way to deal with frustration since.

“Lydia dropped out, and she’s doing just fine,” he said, his voice muffled slightly. At least Nick knew her name now. “Why do I have to keep going?”

“Because we want you to be successful, Jun,” Judy said from the doorway, leaving her vest on the floor as she came in. “There aren’t many jobs you can get without a diploma that won’t leave you on the streets.”

Nick winced, wishing she hadn’t caught the brutally honest bug from him. She grabbed the chair from the desk under the window and dragged it over, sitting in front of their son and taking his wrist.

“And just because Lydia looks like she’s doing well, doesn’t mean she is,” she went on. “Do you even know what she does?”

Jun didn’t answer, not that Nick had expected him to. He glanced at his wife when the teen didn’t move, then sighed, patting the boy’s back before getting to his feet.

“We’re not done with this conversation,” he said. “And until further notice, you’re grounded.”

Judy was close behind when he walked out, pulling the door shut before picking up her vest.

“I know you hate doing that, Nick,” she said softly, touching his arm. They hardly ever had to ground the kids, and it was always clear how it tore at him when those times did come up. He sighed, undoing his tie before tugging it off, leaning heavily against the wall as he started on his shirt. He’d come home to find Tony waiting by the Factory Loft’s main door, Julian sulking in the passenger seat beside him.

“At least we know part of this girl’s name,” he muttered, peeling out of his shirt. He’d started going gray in the last few months, the strands blending with his still mostly cream and orange coat. He’d also developed a slight gut, having fallen into depression after his mother’s death over Christmas. “That should be enough to at least start looking for her.”

“I’ve got some free time tomorrow morning,” she said, starting to undress herself. “I’ll see if I can find anything.”

Nick stripped to his boxers and sat heavily on the bed, his tail lying limp beside him. She wriggled into one of his old T-shirts and sat next to him, putting a paw over his.

“We’ll figure this out, Nick,” she said. “And we’ll set them both straight about it, it’s what we do.”

He chuckled weakly, remembering all the kids they’d helped in the past. He turned to her, brushing her soft cheek.

“You’re right, Fluff,” he kissed her forehead, then got up and headed for their shared dresser, pulled out some pajama pants and tugged them on. They’d gotten past everything else life had thrown at them, and there was no reason to believe this would be any different. “But let’s worry about that tomorrow. Right now, I really need some sleep.”

She chuckled, looping her arm through his as they headed to the bathroom to brush their teeth.

* * *

Judy was glad the rest of the kids had been with friends last night, she knew Nick hated having to play the bad cop, even more than she did. As she’d promised, she’d started looking for any Lydias they may have arrested the last few years, knowing a law-abiding girl wouldn’t have caused the changes they were seeing in their son. It hadn’t been easy, though, since Nick had been sent in to a rather delicate hostage situation, involving a busload of senior citizens and one of their caretakers. The young male had apparently snapped without warning, forcing the driver to steer toward a drawbridge in the Rainforest District.

 _Oh, Nick,_ she briefly held her paws to her chest, trying to take comfort in the lingering scent of his mark and the warmth of her rings. She knew he was an excellent negotiator, and had an almost spotless record for deescalating situations, but that had never stopped her from worrying, especially now that he wasn’t as spry as he used to be.

She found it hard to believe at times, that they’d been married for almost twenty years, that their oldest was attending the same college she had. They were both still captains of their respective devisions, since neither of them were interested in the bureaucracy and red tape that came with being chief. Bogo had finally retired the year before, and last she’d heard, he and Erin were on a magnificent cruise, exploring the world neither of them had ever gotten the chance to see before.

Her ears perked when she heard voices outside, relief flooding her when Nick’s was among them. In the past, she would’ve rushed out to hug him, but had learned that it was always better when she let him come to her. Her tail flicked when he opened her office door without knocking, the only one who could get away with doing so, her heart falling a bit when she saw the bandages on his face and neck.

“I ended up getting thrown out of the bus as it was slowing down,” he explained, reaching up to touch one. “I’m just glad he decided to make the driver stop before they hit the spike strips.”

He walked toward her like he was in pain, and she knew he’d have at least a few bruises tomorrow, pulling her into a kiss she was sure would leave her on cloud nine for the rest of their shift.

At least, until she saw the look on his face.

“His name was Tony Ridenger,” he started, leaning back against the edge of her desk. “He was bringing his girlfriend Violet home from the hospital last month, she’d just given birth to their son, Jacob, when they were T-boned by a drunk driver.”

He sighed heavily, gripping his wrist; he’d turned his mother’s favorite earrings into a set of cufflinks.

“Tony got away with bad cuts and bruises, but she and the baby never had a chance…” he turned to her, his eyes full of misery. “He found out the driver was the great niece of one of the mammals on that bus, and the poor guy just lost it. He said he was going to show her what it was like to lose her family that way.”

Judy gasped, reaching out to hug his waist. It wasn’t the first time he’d had to deal with a situation like that, and sadly, she knew it likely wouldn’t be the last.

“Oh, Nick…”

He put an arm around her, the claws on his other paw digging briefly into the wood of her desk before his grip went slack.

“I’m not sure how, but I managed to talk him out of killing anybody, at least, I thought I did…” he clenched his eyes shut, tears starting to leak through his fur. “He managed to break away while Steph was taking him to the cruiser, and he threw himself over the bridge railing. They still haven’t found him yet…”

Judy felt her heart fall right through the floor.

“I’m so sorry, Nick,” she touched his cheek, knowing her eyes were damp as well. “I know how much you care about these mammals, even if you’ve never met them before, and I know how much it hurts when you can’t save them.”

He smiled sadly, covering her paw with his.

“I’d be lying if I said I didn’t understand him, though,” he went on, his gaze locking with hers. “I would’ve done the same thing if I’d lost you and Terry.”

She gasped softly, unable to hold back a sniffle as he leaned in to kiss her again.

“I’m so sorry, Nick,” she repeated, not sure what else she could say. He just wrapped his arms around her, his breath shuddering when he pulled her tightly against him.

“But at least he doesn’t have to feel that pain anymore,” he said quietly, leaning back to look at her. He brushed his fingers through the fringe of fur on her head, she’d started growing it out after Ben had mentioned it would look nice. “I can’t blame him for that…”

She shook her head.

“I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy,” she put a paw on his chest, trying to take comfort in the firm thump of his heart. There were so many times she’d come close to losing him, and each had only served to bring them closer together; she hugged him again, sighing when the warmth of his arms surrounded her. “I’ll always be there for you, Nick, I promise.”

He tilted her chin back, his eyes dark, devoid of his usual humor.

“And I’ll do whatever I can to protect you, Judy,” he answered quietly. “I swear it.”

* * *

Nick read over the file Judy had emailed the night before, his jaw tightening when he saw the extent of the rap sheet.

Lydia Pride had dropped out at sixteen, after being expelled from almost every school in the City Central District. Her father, a serval named Harvey, was the manager at the Palm Hotel, her mother, a sand cat named Sheila, a well-known beauty consultant. By all accounts, Lydia should have had a normal, happy childhood, but from the time she could walk, she’d been causing trouble. Bullying other kids, lashing out at teachers, petty theft, breaking and entering, prostitution as a minor. His lip curled when he saw underage smoking and drinking on the list as well, knowing the damage such habits caused in a developing brain. How the hell had Julian even come across this girl?

He looked up when someone tapped on his office door, smiling slightly when Judy poked her head through the crack.

“I take it you saw the file?” she slipped in, pulling it shut behind her. She’d had a meeting with the mayor that morning, her navy blazer tucked neatly over her arm. The top button of her white blouse was undone, the shirt tucked into a slim-fitting pencil skirt. She’d also taken to wearing her rings on a chain around her neck, having almost lost her wedding band when it had fallen in the sink in the break room. He nodded, groaning softly as he leaned back in his chair. Part of him still couldn’t believe he was already fifty, that he’d been on the force for almost as long as he’d lived on the streets.

“Just finished,” he answered, scrolling back to the top. In the attached photo, Lydia looked like she would be highly attractive, if she hadn’t started smoking a pack a day from eleven, and getting drunk at twelve. There were also records stating her parents had tried literally everything to get their daughter back, and Nick sorely wished it were possible. But at this point, the girl was just too far gone. “I wish I could figure out how Jun crossed paths with her in the first place.”

Judy hung her jacket on the doorknob, then came behind his desk to climb in his lap, laying back against his shoulder. He draped an arm loosely around her, still manipulating the mouse with his other paw. There were plenty of other documents to look over, but even without them, it was clear Lydia Pride was nothing but bad news.

“It’s my turn to go home early tonight,” she spoke up, putting a paw over his. “I’ll see if I can get something out of him, I’ve already asked Ben and the others to help keep an eye out for her.”

She stretched up and kissed his cheek, nuzzling briefly into his fur.

“I also got a call from the litter’s school on my way back from the mayor’s office,” she added, after settling herself again. “They want us to come in tomorrow to discuss the issues he’s been having lately.”

He sighed.

“I got off the phone with them just before I saw your email,” he shook his head. “I’m surprised they didn’t call us in sooner.”

She pulled in a breath through her teeth.

“They’ve called me in a couple times, actually,” she admitted, playing nervously with her paws. “I-I meant to tell you, but I just…”

She trailed off, dropping her paws, her eyes glued to the floor. He glared tiredly at her, then rolled his eyes.

“You just didn’t want to give me anything else to worry about,” he finished flatly. She glanced up at him, then nodded weakly.

“Y-You were still dealing with…with your mother,” she said, a line of pain in her voice. Genevieve had become somewhat of a surrogate mother figure to her, after everything her family had put her through. As hard as it had been after she’d passed, he was happy all the children had gotten to know their grandmother, and through her, their grandfather. There were days he’d almost been able to forget his father had died when he was little, with as many stories as his mother had told the kits, stories he’d heard a hundred times himself growing up. He came back to the present when Judy laid a soft paw on his arm. “And I think that’s about when Jun started having problems, too…”

Julian had been the hardest hit when he’d heard his grandmother was sick, even Genevieve had admitted to feeling something special with him, a bond none of the other children had quite shared with her. It hadn’t been long after that he’d begun doing poorly in school, getting into fights, arguing with authority figures. It had only compounded their grief, feeling like they were losing their sweet little boy.

“I’ll try and have another talk with him when we’re done at the school tomorrow,” he closed out his email, then sat back in his chair, bringing her fully in his lap. She nodded, tilting her head to kiss his chin.

“We’ll get through this, Nick,” she sounded determined as ever. “Just like we’ve gotten past everything else life has thrown at us, I know it.”

He smiled faintly, rubbing her shoulder as he pulled her closer to him.

“I doubt I’ll ever be as optimistic as you are, Fluff,” he hugged her, softly chuckling as she nestled against his chest. “But I’d be lying if I said it hadn’t rubbed off on me at all.”

She giggled, draping her arms around his neck as he got to his feet. She felt heavier than when they were younger, not quite as solid, but he knew she was still a force to be reckoned with; they both were. He kissed her forehead, lightly marking her before letting her hop down.

“I’m glad the kids have those overnight field trips tonight, and that Adrian and Erin agreed to watch Julian,” she grabbed his tie, pulling him closer to her level. “Because I was just thinking that we need some stress relief. What do you say, sweetheart?”

His tail puffed when he saw the heat in her eyes, his nose twitching at the faint thread of scent starting to dance around her. That was one thing that hadn’t changed, and he hoped it never would. He flashed a sly smirk.

“You read my mind, sweetheart,” he grabbed her paw, still tight around his tie. “You read my mind.”

* * *

“Julian was one of our best and brightest,” Principal Woolworth finished, holding his hooves together. Nick and Judy had clocked out early that day, and had spent most of the afternoon speaking with him in his office. Julian had been called in, as well, slumped and scowling in an oversized chair between his parents. “It’s very worrying to see such a drastic change in behavior.”

Judy cleared her throat.

“It’s disconcerting for us, too, Mr. Woolworth,” she said. “But Nick and I believe we’ve found out why he’s been acting this way, and I can promise the matter will be resolved soon.”

The old sheep nodded, putting his hooves on his desk.

“I can only hope so, Mrs. Wilde,” he focused on the kit between them. “Otherwise, I’m afraid I’ll have no choice but to expel him.”

Nick coughed a bit.

“That’s a bit extreme, isn’t it?” he asked. The principal shook his head.

“I have the safety and wellbeing of the other students and faculty to worry about, Mr. Wilde,” he explained. “And I’m afraid that, if your son’s poor behavior escalates any more than it already has, expulsion may be the least of his worries.”

Judy cast a pointed look at their son, who just glared defiantly back.

“There won’t be any need for that,” she focused back on the principal. “We’ll get everything straightened out, Mr. Woolworth, I promise.”

The sheep nodded, then pushed away from his desk.

“I wouldn’t expect anything less from you, Mrs. Wilde,” he said. “You both have done an amazing job raising these kids, I’m sure we’ll be able to straighten this out.”

Nick and Judy got to their feet as well, Nick keeping a firm grip on Julian’s arm.

“You bet we will,” he stated firmly, staring down at the teen with unconcealed anger. Julian flinched slightly, fighting his father’s grip the whole walk to the car. He groaned loudly when the older male climbed in back with him, hardly letting go long enough to let him buckle up.

“We know about Lydia,” Judy said, as she adjusted the driver’s seat. “How’d you even meet someone like her?”

Julian scoffed, turning to glare out the window. The early autumn sun hung low over the city, the roads full and bustling as always. When he felt sure the kit wouldn’t try to bolt while they were stopped, Nick released him, took out his phone and tapped out a text.

“We’ll find out, even if you don’t tell us,” he said, still keeping a close eye on the boy. “I know everyone, and there’s still plenty of mammals who owe me favors.”

Julian’s glower darkened, a low growl starting to rumble in his chest. The one Nick returned was deeper and harsher, a practiced intimidation tactic that had worked on so many criminals in the past, whether or not they knew who he used to be. It did its job this time as well, his son’s becoming a frightened, yet angry whimper.

“The first time I cut school after Grandma died,” he spat finally. “She was smoking weed on a street corner downtown and gave me some. We’ve been hooking up ever since.”

His ears went limp when he saw the snarl on Nick’s lips, the anger snapping in Judy’s eyes when she glanced back at them in the rearview mirror.

“It’s bad enough you’ve been cutting school and getting into fights,” she started, taking the exit that was the quickest way home. “But now you’ve been using drugs? We raised you better than this, Julian Andrew!”

Julian scoffed again, a tense silence filling the car as Judy pulled into their usual spot in front of their building, their son taking off inside before she’d even turned off the engine. Nick had been close on his heels, but she still up locked the car as quickly as she could, catching up just as the elevator doors had begun to close. Nick had forgotten his dislike of them when his mother had come to live in the loft, an arrangement the late vixen had only agreed to because her grandchildren had begged her.

“We’re nowhere near done talking about this,” she said as Nick hit the button for their floor. It was just out of her reach unless she hopped, which was starting to become a strain on her knees. “Explaining yourself is going to be the least of your worries.”

Her brow twitched when their son laughed scornfully.

“You guys really spew a lot of bullshit, you know that?” he tried to shake off his father’s grip again. “We all know Dad was a complete screw-up, so how is it any surprise that I am?”

Nick went stiff, his fur bristling, but other than that, he didn’t react. Judy pinched the bridge of her nose, then rubbed it when her claws dug in too far.

“That is _not_ the point here. Nick made the choice to turn his life around, and you can do the same thing tonight,” she went on, her chin lightly trembling with the effort it took to keep her voice steady. “You can tell us where to find Lydia, and then we can decide how you’re going to-”

“Oh, give me a break!” Julian cut her off. “We all know Dad would still be hustling suckers if he hadn’t met you, and you’d be farming carrots because you cared more about proving you weren’t some token bunny than doing your damn job! It’s a complete fluke you guys ended up here, so don’t give me any shit on-!”

The slap was abnormally loud in the closed space. Julian held his burning cheek, tears pooling in his left eye. Breathing hard, Judy stared in horror at her paw, not wanting to believe what she had just done. Her whole body shaking, she clenched it tightly, taking off at top speed before the doors had even fully opened on their floor. A door slammed down the hall, and Nick saw theirs hanging slightly ajar when he and Julian reached it; he didn’t bother to hide the rage in his eyes when he stared down at the kit, who looked throughly mollified.

“Get to your room and stay there,” he growled shortly, shoving his son forward. “You’re going to apologize to your mother in the morning, and since you’ve been suspended, you’ll be coming to the precinct with me, and you will do whatever the hell I tell you to do. We will not tolerate any more of this behavior, and I will not hesitate to lock you in a holding cell, if that’s what it takes to knock some sense into you.”

He felt his temper flare when Julian just crossed his arms, the smug, superior look on his face all too familiar. He stormed closer and gripped the boy’s arm again, his claws digging in to force the point home.

“Did I stutter, Julian Andrew Wilde?” he demanded, his teeth bared. “I said ‘get to your room’, _now_.”

Julian gulped, his tail frizzing as he finally listened, hightailing it to the room he shared with his brothers, keeping the door wide open. Nick sighed heavily, his posture slumping with it. He always despised having to act that way, especially with children, even if it was for their own good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I may end up splitting this one in two, it's already twice as long as the first one, and I don't see it ending too soon...
> 
> 10/31 edit: Yeah, it's been split, fingers crossed I can finish it soon!


	4. Teen Trouble II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, this one's going to be a three-parter now, at least...

Judy was facedown on their bed, her face buried in the novelty apple pillow Nick had bought for her birthday years ago. Its rich green color had faded, and it was threadbare in places, but she had slept with it near her every night since, especially, she’d admitted more than once, when he couldn’t come home to her.

“Carrots?” he tapped lightly on the doorframe, knowing she still reacted impulsively, and usually violently, when spooked. His heart twisted when he picked up the muffled sounds of her heartbroken sobs, and he went to sit next to her, rubbing her small back comfortingly. “Judy…”

She hiccuped, shifting just enough to peek at him past her limp ear.

“H-He’s right, Nick,” she managed, her breath shuddering. “T-That’s why it hurt so much, it’s all one hundred percent true!”

She flopped down again, and he scooted closer, carefully slipping his paws under her, pulling her to his chest and hugging her tightly.

“You were still a rookie,” he reminded her. “And you’d been doubted and talked down to your whole life, of course proving yourself was what mattered most to you.”

He took her shoulders, gazing warmly down at her.

“But the important thing is, you realized your mistakes and did whatever it took to fix them, you didn’t just leave the mess for someone else to clean up,” he brushed the fringe from her eyes, disheveled from her sprint down the hall and her sobbing fit. “The fact you were willing to give it up after being made the face of the ZPD is all the proof anyone would need to know its the job that really matters to you, not being some hero with their picture on the news.”

She flashed a shaking, watery smile as he wiped her cheek, sighing when he kissed her forehead.

“The fact you were able to forgive me is what’s most important to me, Nick,” she said, already calmer. “That you accepted me and stood by me, no matter what kind of shit I put you through. You’re the hero here, Nick, not me.”

He chuckled.

“I’m just the guy who knocked the little country bun on her tail, then swept her right off her feet,” he nuzzled her forehead. “And I’m only here because of you, Judy, Julian was right about that, too. I’d still be hustling and conning mammals if you hadn’t come along, you’re just as much my savior as I am yours.”

She smiled again, her lips almost steady.

“We’ve been a team since day one, we just didn’t know it yet,” she took his paws. “And I know we’ll be one for the rest of our lives, no matter what.”

He nodded.

“No matter what.”

He leaned in and kissed her tenderly, pulling back when he felt his phone vibrate in his shirt pocket. Erin and Adrian were waiting downstairs, ready to pick up their troublemaking “nephew”.

“I completely forgot they were taking him tonight,” Judy said, still lounging against him. He hummed thoughtfully, tapping out a text as quickly as ever, even with just one paw.

“I told them I’ll be down with him in a couple minutes,” he set her down, groaning softly as he stood. His knees had been giving him more trouble than usual lately, he guessed because he’d been in such a slump. Judy hopped lightly to the floor beside him.

“I’ll go get dinner started,” she clasped her paws tightly together. “I don’t think I can trust myself around Julian right now.”

He knew how hard it was for her to admit that; he nodded, then headed down the hall to the boys’ room. Only to stop dead in his tracks.

“Oh god…” his phone slipped from his fingers, his paw having gone numb. Judy was by his side in a second, a terrified gasp leaving her when she saw it. The window was wide open, the dark blue curtains fluttering in the breeze, the blaring sounds of the traffic below pouring in.

“No…”

There was a pile of school supplies dumped on the bottom bunk, dresser drawers emptied and left hanging open, hangers scattered on the floor in front the closet. Nick shook off the shock, then snatched his phone, his fingers a blur as he unlocked it and messaged their former boss that their son had done the unthinkable.

Julian Wilde had just become a teenage runaway.

* * *

Nick and Judy had no idea how to explain Jun’s disappearance to the other children. The most they could say was that their brother was upset, that he’d gone to stay with friends until he calmed down. A whole week scraped agonizingly by, and still there wasn’t any sign of him, despite the constant vigil kept up by nearly every patrolling cop in the city. Even while off-duty, their friends kept a careful watch, just in case anyone managed to spot him. Terry came home for spring break, saying he’d heard stories about his brother, and had begged to know they weren’t true, only to be struck speechless when he learned that they were.

“Jun wouldn’t do something like this,” he’d said, before dropping his things by the couch and going right back out the door. He’d spent every day looking since, keeping the rest of the brood calm at night. One thing that was clear to everyone was how hard Judy was taking it, even more so than the rest of them. She hardly ate, and slept even less, Nick had already had to take her to the hospital for severe dehydration, and if things kept going like this, there was only one way he could see it ending.

“Carrots, please, you _have_ to eat something,” he sat by their bed, a bowl of steaming apple oatmeal in his paws. It was pretty much the only thing she could keep down now. His wife had barely moved from it since the first morning after their son had left, when the whole night had gone without anything. Even while recovering from both a miscarriage and disastrous tapeworm infection, she’d never looked so ill and worn. She hardly had the strength to shake her head by this point, groaning from the effort it took just to turn away from him.

“Not until our baby is safe,” she whispered, the most she could manage. “I-It’s my fault he’s gone…”

“No,” he set the bowl on the nightstand, then gripped her paw tightly. “It’s Lydia’s. She’s the one-”

“ _She_ didn’t slap her son just because she didn’t like what she heard,” she suddenly pushed herself up, her dull eyes filled with self-loathing as she glared at him. She’d aged years in just a few days, so thin and frail, the fire of defiance and pride that had made him start falling for her completely extinguished. She fell back down, panting heavily. “ _S-She_ didn’t-”

“Didn’t spend fifteen years raising him, or her whole life helping make the world better,” he kissed her forehead, his heart sinking when he felt how cool she was. If her temperature got much lower, he’d have to take her in again. “ _She_ doesn’t inspire everyone around her to be the best mammal they can be.”

He felt tears brimming as he gazed at her, his breath catching when she stared blankly back.

“Judy, _please_ ,” he implored her, his words catching. “I-I can’t lose you!”

“And neither can we,” Terry said, pushing his way in. He was an inch shorter than Nick and lean like Judy, the violet ring in his eyes faded, but still visible. Nick had taken to keeping the door cracked, so the children wouldn’t have to see their strong, resilient mother so broken. Fin and the rest of the brood trailed in behind him, grouping around the bed, all of them staring resolutely at her. Camryn and Caden clamored on and cuddled up on either side of her, the only ones still small enough to do so.

“Don’t hurt yourself, Mommy,” Camryn begged, her blue eyes watery. Her nose was twitching, her lips trembling. “Jun’s just being a big meanie like always!”

Julian had developed a bad habit of teasing her, which had only gotten worse after Terry had left for college.

“He’s still scared of the monsters in the closet,” Caden added, his green gaze glinting. His fur had darkened to a pale gray, with a few strands of black on the tips of his ears. “He can’t stay outside forever!”

“This is all Lydia’s fault,” Gypsy said. She was tall and slender, a violet-eyed beauty. “Some of my friends’ older sisters went to school with her before she dropped out, she did stuff like this all the time!”

“We’re all helping to look for him, Mom,” added Jasmine, sitting on the edge of the mattress. Her pale brown eyes flashed fearfully. She’d gained a bit of weight the last few months, and had taken to wearing bigger clothes to hide it. “But we can’t find him without you, and we don’t want to!”

Fin stepped away from his siblings and took the bowl of oatmeal, holding a heaping spoonful out to her. Like his namesake, he was the shortest of the litter, his eyes dark and warm as honey.

“We’re not moving until you eat every bite, no matter how cold the food gets!” he did his best impression of Nick. “That’s what you and Dad always said, so now I’m saying it, too!”

Nick was so relieved to hear her laugh, the first in far too long.

“Well, I don’t want to disappoint all of you,” she hugged the twins, smiling as she took that first bite Fin had offered her, more laughter rising when about half of it ended up on her nose.

“It’s great to have you back, sweetheart,” Nick put an arm around her, kissing the top of her head. He plucked a tissue from the box on her nightstand and cleaned her face, then nuzzled her damp cheek. She turned her head to catch his lips with hers. Groaning in disgust, the twins slid off the bed and fled behind Terry, the rest of the room laughing. Fin passed her the bowl, then crossed his arms, keeping his word that he wouldn’t move until she finished it. It didn’t take her long to.

“I can’t just give up like this,” Judy tried to kick off her blankets, looking annoyed that it was still enough to wind her. “It’s not like me, and I can’t just leave Julian out there. We have to find him!”

Terry jumped slightly, pulling his phone from his back pocket, a habit that had made him lose it more than once, but nothing had helped him break it.

“Looks like we won’t have to, I just got a text from Uncle Tony,” he opened it, taking a few seconds to read it. “He couldn’t get hold of either of you, and he doesn’t want Jun to overhear him calling.”

“Where is he?” Judy asked eagerly, her eyes sparking again. “Is he okay?”

Terry winced.

“He’s got a busted nose and black eye from a fight, but he’s in one piece,” he turned off his phone and put it away. “He’s at at Precinct One right now!”

* * *

Nick pulled into the parking garage under the precinct, leaning his head against the steering wheel as he let out a long breath. Judy had wanted to come with him, but he knew she wouldn’t be able to stand the sight of their child in a holding cell, especially in her current state. The children had also begged her to stay, having missed her terribly the past few days. He took another minute to steel himself, then climbed out, almost forgetting to lock the car in his rush to get his son. Tony was waiting by the staircase that led to the cells, disappointment and anger clear on his striped, graying face.

“I can’t believe he’s acting like this,” he said. “What’s gotten into him?”

Nick swallowed hard. Most of the precinct knew how Julian had reacted to his grandmother’s death, but this was a whole new level.

“Lydia Pride,” he answered. “Judy and I just found out he’s been seeing her.”

Tony was dumbfounded.

“You can’t be serious…” he shook his head. “How’d he even _meet_ someone like her?”

Nick shrugged.

“We don’t know,” they reached the end of the stairs. Julian was in the first cell, sitting on the cot with a cold, furious look on his face. “But I’m going to find out.”

It was hard to miss the thread of fear that mingled with Tony’s scent then.

“I’ll just…assign some teams to track her down,” he said nervously, taking one last glance at Jun before heading back to the atrium. Nick waited until his footsteps had faded, then turned to his son, his arms crossed with his own icy mask in place.

“Care to explain yourself?” he asked flatly. “How did you meet this girl, and how long have you been seeing her?”

The teen could only meet his stare for a few seconds, then looked away, his eyes glued to the flat concrete floor, spotted with old gum wads, claw marks and various stains. It was a long time before he said anything.

“I took a wrong turn walking home from school after grandma died,” he began, still watching the ground. “I didn’t realize it until I walked into her, and we started talking.”

It was the first time any of the kids had been that late; Judy had been ready to send out a search party for him when he’d waltzed in the door, smiling like nothing had happened. The only difference was his face had been buried in his phone, when he’d always been the least attached of the brood. Nick wished he’d realized then that something was wrong when Jun had started talking about the girl he’d met, so it could have been nipped in the bud. He shoved out a breath, walking closer to the bars.

“I’m assuming you have her number,” he started. “So you’re going to call her, and tell her it’s over. We’re not going to let you see her any more.”

Jun gaped at him.

“Y-You can’t do that,” he tried to argue. “She’s the only one who listens to me, she actually gets me!”

“So would your mother and I,” Nick returned. “And your siblings, if you talked to us.”

He gripped one of the bars, the metal cold against his palm.

“Lydia is a high school drop-out, she’s a bully, a thief and a thug,” the details of her file had been burned into his mind. “She’s nothing but trouble, and that’s all you’re going to get if you stay with her.”

Jun scoffed.

“She’s awesome, she doesn’t take shit from anyone, and she gets to do whatever she wants!” he bared his teeth. “She doesn’t have any parents or dumb rules to get in the way!”

“She’s also twenty-two,” Nick finished, as calmly as he could. His mother had never raised her voice, and he did his best not to with his kids. “You’re barely fifteen, and still have a future.”

“I don’t care!” Julian growled back, still glaring at him. His bristled tail lashed angrily behind him. “I’m not leaving her, I love her!”

Nick sighed.

“It doesn’t matter if you do or not,” he tried to explain. “Even if she weren’t an adult, you’re not old enough to give consent, which means she’s committing statutory rape.”

Jun rolled his eyes.

“She’s not raping me,” he said, and Nick didn’t like the smirk coming across his son’s lips. “She fucks me however the hell I ask her to, she knows what a girl’s place is!”

Nick barely managed to keep his composure, he was not about to let a kit see that they got to him, especially his own. He walked stiffly to the desk by the opposite wall and snatched the card on it, passing it so quickly through the reader on Jun’s door that he was surprised it registered.

“We’re going to finish this conversation at home,” his voice was tight, dark, and he could see his own rage reflected back in Julian’s eyes. He grabbed the boy’s arm in a steel grip, tossing the card back on the desk as they passed it, pausing at the foot of the stairs to offer one last warning. “And next time you pull a stunt like this, you’ll be lucky to end up in juvenile, do I make myself clear?”

Jun just rolled his eyes, though his rapidly twitching nose told a different story.

“Pfft, whatever.”

* * *

The ride to the loft was tense and silent. Nick’s knuckles were white under his fur as he gripped the wheel, his jaw clenched so tightly, he was surprised his teeth weren’t cracking. Julian was slumped in the back, glaring out the window. The sun had gone down, the stars drowned out by the city’s glow, light filtering from almost every window. When they finally reached the loft, Nick let out the breath he’d been half-holding, wondering if he and Judy would ever be able to get their smiling, kind-hearted child back.

“Look, Jun,” he said over his shoulder. “The whole family is worried about you, all our friends. We just want what’s best for you, and we’re trying to show you that Lydia isn’t. She’s far from it.”

Jun tossed his head to the side.

“I said I don’t give a shit, nothing’s going to stop me from seeing her,” he barely glanced at his father. “So you might as well piss off, you’re wasting your time.”

Nick couldn’t believe he managed to smile a bit at that one, thankfully able to smother it before Jun noticed.

“You’re as stubborn as your mother,” he said. “Probably even worse, since you’ve got me in there, too.”

Jun made a disgusted noise.

“That’s just it,” he leaned forward, gripping the metal grating between the two sets of seats. “I’m a damn freak thanks to you two, the least you can do is let me live how I want!”

Nick cringed. All the children had had to deal with bullying in the past, even with how common mixed-species couples had become. Far fewer were a predator and prey, however, making those “unnatural” children targets for other kids and adults alike. Nick couldn’t count the times he and Judy had suffered the same abuse, starting long before they’d begun trying for kits.

“You all know the mistakes I made growing up,” Nick returned, not moving to get out. Neither of the back doors on his GT could be opened from the inside now, meaning Julian couldn’t leave until he was let out. “I let the bullies get to me, I ran away from home, I lived on the streets for twelve years and started working with criminals. There’s no telling how many times I almost died, or how many might have died because of me. I still live with that guilt, those nightmares, and I wouldn’t wish any of it on my worst enemies, let alone my own kids.”

He grabbed his phone from the cup holder, his text alert having gone off during the drive; Terry was taking the rest of the brood out for pizza, since it was one of the last nights before he went back to campus.

_‘Moms still in bed, she won’t get up’_

Nick sighed again, saying he’d just gotten back with Julian, and that he was sorry Terry had had to come home to this. He shoved it in his pocket and cut the engine, keeping the keys out of reach when he went around to let Jun out. As before, he took a firm grasp of his son’s arm, the teen fighting him all the way to their floor. Nick didn’t let go until they were in their living room, keeping himself between Jun and the locked front door. He was glad the rest of the kids had already left, he didn’t want them to hear what would likely come next.

“This is the _last_ time you pull a stunt like this,” he said severely. “It’s bad enough you’ve had all of us worried sick, but the fact you were caught _dealing drugs_ is too far. I’m telling you, Julian, one more stunt, and you’re going _straight_ to juvenile detention, for as long as it takes to fix your attitude. Is that clear?”

Julian just scoffed, sauntering arrogantly back to the room his room.

“We both know you’ll never do it,” he said. “You’re too damn soft, and it’s not like I was dealing crack or something!”

Nick followed closely, easily keeping the door open when Jun tried to slam it shut.

“It was ecstasy,” Nick informed him. “And who knows what it had been cut with, you could’ve killed somebody!”

Nick’s gut had never twisted more than when he heard his son laugh. His own son, thinking that causing another mammal’s death was funny!

“They’re the dumbasses buying it,” he said. “Not my fault they got themselves hooked on it!”

He could barely keep a lid on the anger starting to boil in his veins; he pulled in a long, harsh breath through his nose, locking it behind that old mask that nothing could break, except the warm gaze of a certain violet-eyed bunny.

“I’ve sent out a warrant for Lydia’s arrest,” he said plainly, his tail snapping behind him. Julian stared at him.

“Y-You can’t do that!” he shouted. Nick stared blankly at him.

“She’s broken just about every law there is,” he answered. “And I’m going to make sure she never gets near you again.”

He stood firm when Julian growled, not responding when the furious teen started shoving him.

“Get the hell out of my room,” he screamed furiously. “I fucking hate you!”

The words cut him to the core, but he wasn’t about to let it show. This was no time to be an emotional fox.

“Believe me, you’d hate me a lot more if I let you keep seeing her,” he said. “Mammals like that don’t care who they hurt, or what laws they break, as long as they get what they want in the end. And trust me when I say it’s never enough for them, they will _always_ want more, no matter what.”

* * *

Julian ducked into the alley, holding his breath while the teacher called for him, hoping the smell of old flowers and rotting fruit would keep the wolf from sniffing him out. It was bad enough Dad had dropped him off in front of school like a little kid, after he’d already spent two weeks being dragged around the precinct, but they’d arranged a chaperone for him, to make sure he made it to all his classes. It had taken everything he’d had to not just bolt, waiting until the cruiser had turned the corner, and all it had taken was the teacher glancing at his watch, and he’d been off like a shot toward Downtown. He breathed a sigh of relief when the wolf went past, crawling out of his hiding place and keeping low to the ground as he crept further down the alley. If there was one good thing about his parents, it was that they’d made sure he and the brood knew the city like the back of their paws, in case any of them were stupid enough to get themselves lost. He just hoped he could make it to the Rainforest District before he was caught; that was where Lydia had said she’d be this week, and once he was back with her, he’d never have to give a damn about his stupid family, or their damn rules.

 _I’m never letting_ anyone _tell me what to do again,_ he thought, trying his best to look natural when he emerged on another street. It was even more crowded than usual, meaning that, even if he was singled out, it would be a piece of cake to just disappear again. Using the buses or subways would be too risky, though, those losers would think it their job to call the cops on him for skipping.

 _School’s for dumbasses,_ he flashed a smirk at his reflection in the reflective side of an office building. He really was one good-looking mammal. He stuck his paws in his pockets, his confident swagger on full display as he merged with the stream of animals, breaking off from it when he reached the tunnel he needed, smiling at the traces of damp, humid air drifting from the jungle on the other side. He’d been pissed when Mom had taken his phone away, but it meant one less way they’d be able to track him down, and he wouldn’t have to deal with everyone else he knew bitching at him because he was the only one with enough balls to do what he wanted, no matter what it took to get it.

 _I should’ve done this months ago,_ he stretched his arms over his head, sighing happily when he walked out into the Rainforest District, stopping just long enough to grab the umbrella from his backpack. He’d sold a bullshit story about needing a new one last time he’d been dragged shopping, and had picked the same dark green one, packing it with everything he’d need to start his new life of freedom. The one filled with his school shit was stashed under Fin’s bunk, and he laughed at how easy it’d been to fool his parents, who were supposed to be the best cops in the freaking city. He wondered how long it would take them to notice he’d raided the house the night before, hitting every place his family hid cash. It hadn’t been easy getting to some of them, and he’d almost been caught sneaking out of their room, but seeing his haul had made it all worth it. He’d thought about taking his mom’s jewelry, too, since she never wore the shit, anyway, but had decided to leave it for now, laughing again as he thought how much fun it would be to break in and start stealing, right under their noses.

His tail snapped straight when he saw Lydia, smoking in the cover of an awning with some other girls. She was the sexiest female he’d ever seen, but the best thing about her was that she didn’t take shit from anyone, she did whatever the hell she wanted and didn’t care what anyone else thought. She smiled when she saw him, inviting him over with one crooked finger, his heart racing when he saw the smile on her face.

“I knew I shouldn’t have worried,” she told him, brushing her tail across the backs of his legs. Her golden, black-spotted fur was brittle, even thinning in spots, but he didn’t care, all that mattered to him was how much of a badass she was. “You ready for the real world, big boy?”

He chuckled, his fingers tightening on the straps of his backpack.

“Hell, yeah, I am,” his smirk widened. “I’ve already got all the ideas we’re gonna need, and since I know how to think like a cop, it’ll be a cinch to avoid them.”

Lydia hummed, licking her thin lips.

“What did I tell you, girls?” she turned to her friends. “Is he exactly what we’ve been looking for, or what?”

One of them, a slender gazelle, giggled, playing with her short pink skirt.

“He certainly is, Dia,” she lifted it, Julian’s ears flaring when he saw she wasn’t wearing anything it. “And you know what we do with new members of the group, don’t you, baby?”

Julian swallowed hard as his pants got tighter; just when he’d thought the day couldn’t get any better.

“You better fucking believe it!”


	5. Teen Trouble III

Julian couldn’t figure out what was wrong with him. He’d spent the last month and a half doing whatever the hell he wanted, whenever the hell he wanted. Lydia had introduced him to everyone and everything she knew, from gang members who’d taken full advantage of his knowledge of the city, to drugs he’d barely even heard of, let alone ever tried. He’d also had mind-blowing ‘fuck sessions’ with her and her friends, even if it had taken a while to figure out what the other two liked and expected from him.

Jamie, the gazelle, loved nothing more to be eaten out, and he was getting to the point where he didn’t want to throw up afterward, while Lilac, the koala, all but begged to show off her deep-throating skills. He loved his time with Lydia most, of course. No one had ever gotten, understood him, quite like she did, not even his grandmother.

He cringed at the thought, and not just because it made him sick. It was the sense of guilt that had come out of nowhere when he’d seen the first missing poster with his face in Sahara Square; there was no fear of him being caught by any of them, since he kept up a dye job and tail trim that made him look nothing like the pissy little loser he’d been before. It didn’t matter how many times he shoved the thought away, tried to bury it under everything he actually _did_ want to think about, it just wouldn’t leave him alone. The disappointed, heart-broken look on his grandmother’s face he saw almost every night, the echoes of fun memories with his family he’d tried so hard to repress. He was actually starting to think that, maybe, he actually _wasn’t_ cut out for this kind of life, that it _wasn’t_ what he actually wanted. He thought he’d finally gotten over missing his family, he’d told himself how pathetic he’d been, crying about it the first few nights after he’d left. Just how much of a baby was he?

“Oh, Jun!” Lydia slinked into the room in a little white bandage dress, the tight fabric outlining every skinny contour. It twisted his stomach to realize that even she wasn’t as pretty as he’d thought she was before, when she’d first started offering him the freedom he’d been longing for. They were going to a rave tonight, maybe that was all he needed to get his head back on straight. “You ready, baby?”

“Almost,” he grabbed his favorite black jacket with the dragon wings stitched on the back, getting annoyed when he noticed, again, how tight it was getting on him. He wasn’t sure if he’d finally hit his growth spurt, or if it had to do with how much he’d been bulking up lately. After all, being Nick ‘knee-breaker’ Wilde’s son left him with a pretty big reputation to live up to, especially now that the tod had been stupid enough to walk away from it. At least most of the mammals who’d had a grudge against him were either dead or locked up for life by now, and most of the new blood on the streets wasn’t stupid enough to try screwing with him a second time. He heard Lydia hum in appreciation behind him, and he hated that the light drag of her claws along his ear made him want to shove her away. She’d done so much for him, how the hell couldn’t he love her anymore?

“You’ve got to be the hottest thing I’ve ever seen,” she told him, gripping his shoulders. All he could see was how dull and cracked her claws were, how rough and dry her paw pads were as they scraped along his cheeks. He’d gone with a basic dye-job no one would think twice about: white on brown, the fur of his tail kept as short as it could be. He wasn’t sure what species he could pass as now, but it was better than being instantly recognized as the half-prey, half-pred freak so many mammals had seen him as. He went stiff as her fingers slipped under his red T-shirt, dragging through his short fur. “I can’t wait to get my paws on you tonight…”

He put on one of the many fake smiles his dad had taught him: cocky and confident.

“And I can’t wait, either, baby,” he returned, hoping she took his shiver for something else when she grabbed his ass. She’d already admitted that she had no sense of smell anymore, so she’d never pick up on the fact he was no longer interested in her, as far as his scent went. He’d also seen her pissed off more than once by now, usually because she thought she’d been shorted on drugs, or hadn’t gotten the pay she’d expected, or thought she’d deserved, from a client. That was something else that had started bugging him recently, when he hadn’t given two shits about it just a few weeks ago.

 _I’ll think about it tonight,_ he resolved silently, pushing the thoughts to the back of his mind. It was time to cut loose and have some fun now, not worry about crap that shouldn’t even matter to him. Still, there was one extra-nagging idea that refused to be shoved aside: the fact he was actually starting to wish he hadn’t warned Lydia about the warrant his dad had put out for her arrest.

* * *

Judy sat stock-still in her chair, her heart pounding as her mouth went dry. Her paws were numb, her whole body trembling.

“I can’t…”

Almost eight weeks, some of the longest in her life, had passed, and as much as she’d hated to admit it, she’d been on the verge of giving up hope. Every officer assigned to foot or traffic patrol or parking duty had also been tasked with keeping an eye out, and now, after so long, something had finally come of it. Not trusting her voice, she reached for her phone, kept right beside her keyboard as usual, knowing Nick always checked any text as soon as he got it, especially if it was from her or one of the kits.

 _‘Nick, they found him!’_ she could hardly type the words. _‘They really found him!’_

She’d barely sent it when he burst into her office, looking more alive than he had in a month. He swept her up like he’d often done when they were younger, before bringing her down into a kiss that made her believe nothing could ever go wrong after this.

“They found him, Judy,” he said quietly, hugging her tightly to his chest. His heart was racing, just like hers. “They found him!”

Chief Anderson had assigned part of the undercover squad to search for Julian, since there was also still an open warrant out for Lydia’s arrest, and finding either of them would likely lead to the other. While no one had said it outright, there was also heavy suspicion that the teen had shared the tricks he’d learned from his father with other members of the female cat’s circle, along with his intimate knowledge of the city’s layout. That, or the team of petty taggers and thieves had suddenly decided to become a well-organized group of professionals.

Judy looked at the video paused on her computer as Nick sat down behind her desk, holding her securely in his lap. Julian had gotten a dye job, fur trim and had bulked up, but he hadn’t gone anywhere without that demon wing jacket since he’d gotten it for his fourteenth birthday. There was also no mistaking the way he held himself, just like Nick had when they’d first met, and he was never more than a few feet away from Lydia, who already looked even worse than she had when everything had started.

“Whose cam is this?” his question vibrated gently against her side. She reached for the scrap of paper sticking out from under her keyboard.

“Officer Dredger,” she sighed. The giant river otter had proven quite capable at undercover work, and in his short time on the force, had helped bring down several big dealers. If only there weren’t always others waiting to take their places. She laid back against her husband’s shoulder. “I want our baby back…”

“I know, sweetheart,” his arms tightened around her, and he kissed the side of her head. “We’ll think of something, I know it.”

“Captain!” someone knocked excitedly on the door, then threw it open. Dredger’s ears flushed pink when he saw the couple, and he straightened himself out, then cleared his throat. “Uh, sorry to interrupt, ma’am, but…”

“What is it, Dredger?” Judy stood in the gap between Nick’s legs, her ears high and alert as she leaned over her desk. The otter cleared his throat again before stepping further into the office, pulling the door shut behind him.

“I have an idea for how we can get your son back, _and_ take down Lydia’s gang, but…”

“But?” Nick straightened behind her, his voice suddenly cold. It wasn’t that he distrusted the otter, there was just something about the younger male that rubbed him the wrong way, not that he’d ever admitted exactly what it was. Dredger messed with his utility belt, a nervous habit he’d had for as long as Judy had known him.

“It’s okay, Adam,” she said calmly, putting a paw on Nick’s chest. He was so tense, and she took a second to appreciate how solid and strong he still felt. “What did you have in mind?”

Dredger rubbed the back of his neck, then walked closer, stopping short when Nick’s tail thumped against the edge of her chair. She rolled her eyes, nudging him firmly in the ribs.

“Thing is, I’m not sure you two are gonna like it…”

He detailed the plan quickly, to the point Judy almost struggled to keep up.

“You were right,” Nick said once he’d finished. “I don’t like it, but I’m willing to try anything to get our son back.”

“And so am I,” Judy agreed, planting her palms on the desk again. “Go inform the rest of the team, then start setting it up, I want this op carried out as soon as possible!”

Dredger saluted sharply.

“Yes, ma’am!”

He hurried out, shutting the door behind him. She sighed, the sound rising to a shocked squeak when Nick suddenly grabbed her, her eyes snapping wide when he attacked her mouth with his. She grabbed his cheek fur and returned it with equal fervor, both of them breathing hard when he finally pulled away.

“W-What was _that_ about?” she demanded, though not truly upset. She always loved it when he took control like that. He kept hold of her hips, her head falling back as he nuzzled the fur beneath her chin.

“He wants you for himself,” he said, his low voice tinged with a growl. “I can smell it all over him every time he gets near you.”

She uttered a surprised little laugh.

“Oh, Nick,” she cupped his face, smiling at him. “You’re the only one that I want.”

“I know,” he groaned softly as she marked him. “But my instincts still tell me he’s a threat, that I _have_ to stake my claim.”

She giggled again.

“You can stake your claim all you want, Mr. Wilde,” she assured him. She stood on her toes, then nipped sharply at his ear. “As long as you let _me_ claim _mine._ ”

He smiled.

“Whenever you want to, sweetheart,” he kissed her again. “Whenever you want to.”

* * *

Julian messed with the cigarette before throwing it on the ground, grinding it out under his heel. The gritty black foot wraps had been part of their haul from the latest robbery, a warehouse on the edge of Sahara Square, the storage facility for the largest mall in the city. That sort of thing was Lydia’s idea of a girls’ night out, but they always dragged one guy along with them, because somebody had to be the getaway driver. It had been almost a week since he’d first started thinking that this life of freedom wasn’t what he’d hoped it would be, especially once he’d started playing the part of a criminal. He’d told himself it was just guilt because his parents were cops, and that he’d get over it eventually, but the feeling had just kept getting worse.

“Can I ask you something, Julian?” Lilac looked over at him, lying back on the wide railing of the porch steps. The abandoned house in the Meadowlands had become their main hangout, once the ZPD had started cracking down on Savanna Central and the Rainforest District. Jamie and Lydia were upstairs with clients, that fact disgusting him for a much different reason than before. Just shy of twenty, the koala was the youngest in the gang next to him, and had proven to be the most level-headed of Lydia’s circle. She took one last drag of her smoke, then crushed out the butt on the filthy wall, before dropping it in the metal trash can between them. He stuck his paws in his pockets, leaning against the rail by her feet.

“You just did,” he answered, chuckling when she kicked lightly at his shoulder.

“Funny, you little smartass,” she shook her head. “Anyway, I’ve been wondering, how’d you end up on the streets, anyway?”

His grin wilted, his ears falling with it. He hadn’t even told Lydia the whole story.

“My parents are cops,” he started simply, crossing his legs. “I got tired of all their bullshit rules, so I split.”

She looked at him, and he could see the gears turning behind her grayish-brown eyes.

“I’m guessing it’s because you were bored, and Lydia swept you up with some stupid stories about how awesome life on the streets is,” she sat up, leaning back on her paws. “How you can do whatever you want, and there’s nobody to tell you different.”

She shifted when he hopped up to sit next to her, so her legs dangled over the edge with his.

“From how broody you’ve been lately, I’m guessing you’ve figured out it’s not all fun and games, that most of us end up here because we _don’t_ have anywhere else to go.”

He cringed, it had always freaked him out how she could read him like an open book like that. She ran her claws through the thin fur between her ears, a few more strands falling out.

“My mom was an addict,” she went on. “Jamie’s dad kicked her out when he got a new girlfriend and Lydia’s parents just gave up on her, they don’t even live in Zootopia anymore.”

He stared at her, why the hell was she telling him all this?

“What I’m saying, Jun, is you shouldn’t take your family for granted, because they can be gone like that,” she snapped her fingers. “And I know you feel guilty about leaving, it’s all over your face when you think no one’s looking.”

His ears flared. Had it really been that obvious? But then he sighed, not bothering to conceal his scowl when he looked up at the only lit window in the house, his fists tightening when he heard Jamie screaming in bliss.

“You’re right, Lyre,” he smiled faintly at her. “Truth is, I’ve been feeling like a dumbass for weeks, I just didn’t want to admit it. But…”

He trailed off, and his smile disappeared again.

“But I _can’t_ go back, not after this long, they’ll never forgive me for making them worry like this!”

She chuckled gently, then touched his shoulder.

“Oh, I’m sure they’ll ground you until college,” she agreed, then pulled away, in case Lydia decided to sneak a peek at them during her ‘session’. If there was one thing that pissed off the cat more than anything else, it was anyone putting their paws or hooves on what she’d claimed as hers, especially when it came to boys. “But isn’t that better than them not giving a shit either way?”

He had to admit that it was.

“I’ll have to wait until Lydia’s passed out from one of her binges,” he said, for once thankful for that weekly habit of hers. “Then I get my shit and take off, but it’ll suck not seeing you around anymore.”

She smiled at him again.

“Zootopia’s a big city, I’m sure we’ll run into each other again eventually. And if not, then I’ll just come looking for you,” she batted his shoulder again. “Someone has to make sure you don’t do anything else stupid.”

He just laughed.

“Sounds good to me!”

* * *

Lydia didn’t want to believe what she was hearing. It was bad enough that Julian was going to quit the gang, but the fact one of her own best friends was encouraging him to? That was just too much to bear.

“H-Hey, where you going?” the drunk capybara toppled off the busted mattress, his fat ass high in the air. She scoffed in disgust when he kissed at her, especially once he started dry heaving. It did make it easier to empty his wallet, though, especially since he’d been dumb enough to drop it right by the door when they’d come up. She could still hear Jamie with her wolf next door, both of them going at it like they planned to fuck each other completely stupid. Lydia stuffed the thin stack of fives and tens in the pocket of her jeans, the male in the room passed out and snoring before she’d finished getting dressed. She searched his pile of clothes for anything else valuable, coming up with a few fifties zipped in a hidden pocket of his jacket and a silver watch with a diamond-studded face.

 _Finders keepers,_ she sang to herself, pocketing the rest of the loot before heading downstairs. Julian was already gone when she got outside, and she could see Lilac’s pudgy little ass walking down the sidewalk. She thought about going after her, but decided there was something more important to worry about.

 _I have to find Julian_ , she thought, this just had to be one of the days he remembered to wear scent block…

 _Damn it,_ she looked around, hoping to catch even a small sign of where he might have gone, but there wasn’t anything. He might as well have just vanished into thin air. She hadn’t even been inside that long!

 _There has to be a way I can make him stay,_ she thought, wandering blindly in the opposite direction of Lilac. The last thing she needed right now was a distraction like a fight with a traitor. Wait, a fight? She gasped, that was it!

 _I can get in a fight with one of those ass-wipes in his family,_ she decided. _And he’ll see how much better off he is with us!_

She giggled, but her excitement didn’t last long. It was one thing to know where the cops patrolled soshe and the rest of the gang could avoid them, but she didn’t have the first clue where any of them actually lived. And she doubted Julian would be willing to go back to his stupid family, after all the shit they’d put him through before he’d split. But like the old saying went, there was more than one way to skin a reptile…

She shivered in disgust, briefly wondering how a phrase like that had even started in the first place, then shoved the idea from her mind. There was one mammal who might know where Julian’s family was, but whether they’d help or not was a different story. She adjusted her top and kept walking, her stride much more confident than she felt; she’d pay whatever price they named for the info, anything if it meant keeping the bunny-fox with her, and more importantly, with the gang. He was the greatest asset they’d ever had, and she wasn’t about to let him go because he was suddenly wussing out about his decision, that he wanted to go crawling back to Mommy and Daddy. She hadn’t lied when she’d said that once you joined the gang, there was no going back.

 _They probably have some crazy alarm system by now,_ she thought, pulling out her phone. While Julian knew the city and cop patrol routes like the back of his paw, he was useless when it came to knowing mammals, what they offered or where to find them. That was her boyfriend’s field of expertise.

 _‘I’ve got a problem, Conner,’_ she texted, in case there were any nosey little goody two-paws listening in. _‘I know how to change Julian’s mind about leaving the gang, but I need to know where his family squats to do it.’_

She knew he wouldn’t answer, he almost never did, but he’d have the info she was looking for by the time she got back, and she couldn’t wait until she’d learned his price.

She giggled, licking her lips as she thought about how she’d have to pay, since those sessions were even more fun than their usual meet-ups.

 _That little pussy won’t know what hit him,_ she thought with a mean giggle. _And he’s done, I’ll take care of that little lying bitch, hope you’re ready, Lilac…_

She stuffed her phone in her pocket and picked up the pace; tonight was going to be the most fun she’d had in years, and she couldn’t wait to get started.

* * *

Lilac didn’t hesitate before walking into Precinct One; it wasn’t the first time she’d been there, and it would be far from the last.

“Oh, Lilac!” Benjamin Clawhauser waved happily to her from behind the front desk. He’d started graying between his ears and around his muzzle, and had gained back a little bit of a gut, but nothing compared to twenty years ago.

“Hey, Benny!” she called cheerfully, reaching up to pull off her fake earrings, it had taken forever to get used to them. “How’s everything going today?”

He shrugged.

“Oh, you know, same old,” his chipper mood fell. “Still nothing from Julian, Nick and Judy are worried sick!”

She smiled again.

“That’s actually what I came to talk about today,” she finished the walk to his desk. “Can you ask them both to meet me in the break room in a few minutes? I’ve got some info they’ll want to hear, I just _need_ to get out of this stupid get-up first.”

She pulled at her crop top, pale lavender and trimmed with lace; she was embarrassed to be seen in it, but it was the last thing anyone who knew her would think to see her wearing, and that was an asset when working undercover.

“Sure, they should both still be here, I’ll let them know.”

“Great, thanks,” she waved again and hurried to the locker room, sighing in relief when the door shut behind her. She peeled out of the itchy lace top and threw it on the bench in front of her locker, putting in the combination in record time. It always felt great to put on her uniform, especially now that she finally had the news her coworkers had been waiting months for. She straightened her badge and smiled briefly at herself in the mirror on the blue metal door. Officer Lilac Teresa Leafton of Precinct One, just as she’d always dreamed. She finished up and headed to the break room, Nick and Judy fidgeting nervously on the sofa sized for smaller mammals, brought in a few months ago by Chief Anderson. They’d both ages so much the last few weeks, and she silently hoped what she had in mind would finally teach their punk son a lesson.

“Ben said you had some news for us,” Judy spoke up first, tightly gripping Nick’s larger paw. His tail was frizzed, twitching in agitation. “Is Julian okay? Is he coming home?”

Lilac took a breath to steady herself, then blew it out.

“He wants to come home,” she started, holding up a paw when the scared parents started celebrating. “But if I’ve learned anything about Lydia since I met her, it’s that she won’t let him go easily. He went to the gang’s main hideout to pack up his stuff after we talked this morning, but I don’t know how long it’ll take him to come home, and I’m sure Lydia’s already planning a way to make that difficult.”

“What are you suggesting we do?” Nick questioned, crossing his arms at his chest. He cut an imposing figure, and she hoped she’d never end up on his bad side, or his wife’s.

“I’m suggesting we make it as hard for Lydia as she’s going to make it for us,” she swallowed again, toying with her paws. “I haven’t worked out all the details yet, but here’s the basic idea…”

She did her best to outline the plan, hoping it didn’t sound like she was adding details as she went along, her short ears and tail twitching nervously as she watched their expressions change.

“And you really think this could work?” Judy asked dubiously. Lilac sighed.

“To be perfectly blunt, ma’am, no, but I don’t think we’ll have enough time to come up with something else, at least that would both show Julian what she’s really like, _and_ start to take down her gang at the same time.”

The couple stared at her for a moment, then glanced at each other, before Judy climbed off the couch and started walking to the other side of the room.

“We just need to go over things a bit more,” Nick assured her. “We’ll let you know in a minute.”

He strolled after his wife, kneeling down to be closer to her level. The two spoke in low, rapid whispers, Judy gesturing almost haphazardly, while Nick’s paws mainly stayed clasped on his knee. Her head fell, and he tilted it gently back, smiling faintly at her as she put a paw over his on her cheek. She nodded, and he kissed her forehead, letting her help him to his feet before they both came back over.

“We’ll do it,” Judy said firmly, though with a quiver in her voice. “And if it doesn’t work, then…then we’ll try something else.”

Nick put an arm around her shoulders, his tail brushing the backs of her legs.

“I’ve got a couple of my own ideas, though,” he spoke up, “But first, we’ll need to know exactly when he plans to be home.”

Lilac nodded, her heart swelling and sinking at the same time.

“Leave that to me.”


	6. Teen Trouble IV

Dredger sat next to Nick in the surveillance van, watching the monitor connected to the camera Judy was wearing. She was waiting in her and Nick’s loft, going about her business like they weren’t trying to pull off a risky sting operation. She really was one incredible mammal.

His ears went flat at the low growl from the fox beside him, and he shoved his little crush to the back of his mind. Lilac had gone to help Julian bring his stuff back to the loft, and the officer they’d assigned to tail Lydia had reported that she was acting exactly as they had thought. Nick growled again, his tail lashing across the floor behind his chair.

“It’s taking everything I have to not just go out and arrest that bitch now,” he muttered, his eyes locked on the feed from his wife’s body cam. Dredger sighed.

“I don’t even want to know what you’ll end up doing to her,” he commented, not taking his eyes off the screens. Lilac was still out of range, but Lydia and her tail had just entered the vicinity. The twisted cat wasn’t even trying to hide, strolling along the crowded sidewalk without a care in the world. Dredger tensed, clenching his fists in his lap to keep from jumping out and taking her scrawny ass down himself. Judy knew how to take care of herself in this situation, and Julian would never learn to respect his parents if they didn’t stay at the center of the plan.

“Lydia’s coming up soon,” Nick spoke into the mic hooked to his shirt, turning to stare at the van’s blacked-out side window. Judy flashed a thumbs up in the camera’s sight, making both males chuckle. He heard Nick swallow nervously, the fox’s gaze snapping back to the screens when another turned on, showing a somewhat grainy, washed out view of Julian’s face; he was laughing at whatever Lilac was saying, his little smile fading fast as they approached the Factory Lofts building. Dredger wanted to jump out and give the ungrateful little bastard an earful, reminding himself again that Nick and Judy had to be who handled this.

“Looks like the action is starting soon,” he said, watching from the corner of his eye as Nick checked the ever-present tranq pistol on his belt. No matter how many times he got it repaired or replaced, it almost always seemed to jam at the exact wrong time, like some kind of sick cosmic joke. They both went stiff when Lydia’s tail said she’d just entered the building, and that he could see Lilac and Julian coming up the street. Nick stood as the other pair headed inside, his hackles raised as a snarl pulled at his lips; Dredger snatched his wrist when he moved to get out.

“At least wait until they’re in the stairwell,” he said. Lydia had gone right for the elevator, after needing to stop and catch her breath just from walking the block between the lofts and the nearest bus stop. Dredger wondered how much longer the cat actually had, going by how much worse she’d been looking in the last few weeks. He didn’t let Nick go until the pair were halfway up the first flight of steps, and he prayed that things weren’t about to go horribly wrong as the fox threw open the van’s side door and sprinted inside.

 _We’ve planned all this too long for it_ not _to work,_ he tried to remind himself, focusing back on Judy’s and Lilac’s feeds. The pair had stopped on the fifth-floor landing to catch their breath, and he wished he’d thought to strap Lilac with a mic as well, since Jun seemed on the verge of breaking down as he talked. Dredger hoped it had to do with how badly he’d treated his family the last couple months. Lilac reached up to grip his shoulder, and he gave a weak nod to whatever she said, before swiping at his eyes and flashing the ghost of a sad smile. Then he stopped, both of them snapping their attention to the door, his eyes going wide as he shoved it open, dropping the bloated backpack he’d had on his shoulder before darting down the hallway. She left the box before going after him, crashing into the taller mammal when he became rooted to the spot, his bristled tail tucked between his legs as his body shook, and things just got worse as Lilac peered around him.

Judy was lying on the floor, gripping her stomach as she fought to catch her breath, glaring painfully at the cat standing over her, her tail flicking angrily as she glowered at the bunny at her feet. Lydia said something, ready to shoot again when Julian threw up a paw.

* * *

“Lydia, stop!” Julian couldn’t believe what the hell he was seeing. “W-What the fuck are you _doing_?!”

The cat turned to him, shrugging carelessly with the smoking gun still hanging from her bony fingers.

“I’m solving our little problem, Jun,” she explained, running a paw down her skinny hip. “Soon we’ll never have to worry about these losers again.”

He gaped at her, then shook his head, tears pricking his eyes as he took another step toward her.

“I didn’t want this to happen, Dia,” he argued. “I just wanted to come home, I didn’t want to live on the streets anymore!”

She snorted, tapping her foot impatiently.

“Why? Because you missed your stupid family?” she asked mockingly. “I told you, Jun, they’ll never care about you like I do!”

She kicked Judy hard in the stomach, sending her sliding back a few feet, then turned to Julian, her eyes narrowing when she saw the koala standing behind him.

“Don’t think you’re getting away with trying to break up the gang, bitch,” she stomped up to them, growling weakly, and Julian swore he could see dried blood at the corners of her lips. “I trusted you, Lilac, and you backstab me like this!”

“I didn’t have a choice, Lydia,” Lilac returned, her voice shaking slightly. “You were getting out of control!”

Lydia growled again, tears pooling in her eyes as she raised the pistol; Julian stepped in front of Lilac, glaring at the cat defiantly as he held out his arms.

“Go ahead and shoot,” he snapped. “I’m done with you, Lydia, I’m done with all of you!”

He stormed toward her and snatched the gun, throwing it far out of her reach.

“You’ll be lucky if I don’t rip you apart the next time I see you,” he went on viciously. “Now get the fuck out, and stay away from my family!”

He grabbed her wrist when she didn’t move, nearly throwing her toward the open door.

“I said _get out_!”

He didn’t bother looking back as she ran off, staring at the gray and white bunny lying curled up on the floor.

“Mom…”

He ran over, dropping to his knees by her side, tears pooling in his eyes as he whipped out his phone, he’d turned it on for the first time in months this morning.

 _“Front desk of Precinct One, ZPD,”_ Ben spoke calmly. _“How may I—”_

“U-Uncle Ben!” he cut the cheetah off, he couldn’t stop crying. “M-My mom’s been shot! We’re at the loft!”

 _“Julian? What?”_ he sounded shocked. _“I’m sending an ambo now, do you know who did it?”_

Julian choked.

“M-My ex-girlfriend,” he managed. “She just ran outside!”

 _“Got it, we’ll find her,”_ Ben promised calmly. _“Now was anyone else hurt?”_

Jun took several fast, shaking breaths.

“I-I don’t know,” he gulped. “L-Lilac and I just came in and saw her pointing a gun at my mom!”

“Because that was exactly what we wanted her to do.”

He jumped, whirling to see an older red fox in the doorway, breathing hard.

“Dad…” he almost couldn’t believe his eyes. Blood stained the torn sleeve of Nick’s mussed uniform, several fresh scratches oozing on his cheek, but the biggest shock was the mammal squirming helplessly in his father’s grip.

“Let me go, you bastard!” Lydia growled, her thin, matted face twisted in rage. She snarled at Julian, snapping her broken teeth as she fought harder to break Nick’s hold. “You little piece of shit! You set me up, didn’t you?!”

Julian clutched his phone to his chest, nearly hyperventilating, his eyes bugging from his head when he felt a warm, tender paw on the back of his leg.

“He didn’t _have_ to set you up,” Judy gasped, holding her stomach as she struggled to her feet. She pulled up her shirt, revealing her bulletproof vest. “Because you fell for it hook, line and sinker.”

She gasped again, falling to her knees. Lydia gaped at them, then screamed in fury, nearly managing to get free; nick jabbed her hard in the side, knocking the wind out of her.

“That’s more than enough out of you,” he snapped, then turned to his wife and son. “I’ll see you two in recovery, I’m taking this bitch in.”

He easily hauled Lydia to her feet, briefly readjusting his hold before forcing her down the hall, her breathless screeches echoing in Jun’s ears long after they were gone. His legs gave out, his phone falling from nerveless fingers. He cringed when Judy took his paw, giving him a pained, comforting smile.

“S-She almost killed you,” he finally managed, fresh tears streaming down his cheeks. “She almost killed you!”

She groaned, still clutching her ribs.

“I-I know, son,” she told him. “But if it meant…showing you who she really was…”

She coughed a bit, smiling again when he put his jacket over her shoulders.

“Then it was worth it,” she leaned against him when he put an arm around her. “I’m just sorry…we had to scare you like this…”

* * *

Three sets of ears perked at the growing clamor of sirens, and Jun swallowed hard before gingerly picking up his mother, holding her so she reclined in his arms. He hated the grimace that flashed across her face, knowing he was the cause of it.

"What about Terry and everyone else?" he asked anxiously, one ear flicking toward the open door; it was unnerving how quickly things had gone silent again. She managed to smile.

"They're with…Aunt Stephanie," she explained. "She and Ben were…both in on this."

She breathed sharply through her teeth. Lilac pulled a handkerchief from her pocket and wrapped the gun in it, looking guilty when she turned back toward them.

"I was part of this too, Julian," she admitted. "It was my first undercover assignment after being assigned to Precinct One, we've had our eye on Lydia and her gang for months."

Anger sparked in Jun's veins, he hated mammals who lied to him, but the feeling quickly died, as he remembered why they'd had to do all this.

"I'm so sorry, Mom," he lowered his forehead to hers. "I can't believe I let that bitch get to me!"

"It's okay, Jun," Judy briefly nuzzled him. "I'm just glad…you learned."

He nodded, turning when the paramedics showed up at the door. The last thing he wanted to do was leave his mother's side, but he knew he'd just be making their job harder than it needed to be, and right now, he had his own to do. He laid her out on the stretcher, unable to look as the two gazelles started to check her over.

"She'll be fine, Julian," Lilac put a paw on his shoulder. "She's been through a lot worse than this."

He nodded, remembering the stories he and his siblings had grown up hearing. He wouldn't have believed most of them, if there hadn't been so many mammals who'd lived them at Precinct One, and the scars on his parents. There had also been one incident where his father had briefly gone savage when he and the litter had been in third grade, after a huge case had left him enormously stressed and sleep-deprived, he was just glad their mother had been there to help calm the fox down.

"Come on, Jun," Lilac pulled him out of his head. The paramedics had already left, and he saw a flash of the ambulance turning onto the street from the corner of his eye. "You'll just have to answer some questions down at the precinct, then I'll take you to the hospital to meet up with everyone, okay?"

Jun swiped at his nose, then nodded. At least it would help him process what the hell had just happened. She let him grab a couple things before they left, then led him to the parking lot. The van he'd seen when they'd come up wasn't there, but a cruiser was, driven by a cheetah he'd never seen before.

"You've got a lot of explaining to do, kid," he said flatly, then nodded to the back door. Julian sighed and climbed in, curling up with his backpack in his lap. He'd managed to steal a few things from Lydia's room the last few weeks, hoping it would help the police bring her in, and not just get in trouble for another count of theft. He kept his eyes glued to the dark floor of the cruiser, his mind whirling with the events of the last few months. It wouldn't surprise him at all if his parents completely disowned him.

 _It'd be the least I deserve,_ he thought, barely glancing up when they pulled into a parking spot at Precinct One. Chief Anderson was waiting by the front desk, his arms crossed, his face a cool mask of disappointment.

"I'll be talking to you myself," he said, and Jun winced at his tone.

"I'm sorry," he returned, still unable to face the tiger. "I'll do whatever it takes to fix this."

There was a tense silence, then a long sigh.

"I'm sure you will, now follow me," Tony started walking, Julian having to run to keep up. He thought they'd plant him in one of the cold, sterile interrogation rooms near the stairs that led down to the holding cells, but instead, he found himself climbing onto the oversized seat across from the tiger's desk as Anderson sat behind it, planting his elbows on the edge and resting his chin on his laced fingers. "Why don't you tell me how this all started?"

Jun swallowed, his nose twitching madly as he leaned forward to place his backpack on the desk, his tail bushed and flicking restlessly.

"I-I met Lydia on the street when I was walking home from school," he started. "I'd had to stay late to finish something and missed the bus, but I didn't want to just sit around and wait for the next one."

Now, he was sincerely wishing he had.

"I thought she was hot," he continued. "That's why I stopped to talk to her, and why I smoked the blunt she offered me. I-I didn't think I'd ever see her again, but every once in a while, she showed up by my school again."

Tony hummed thoughtfully, but otherwise didn't respond.

"It got to the point that she said she'd love to be my girlfriend, and of course, I wasn't about to turn her down," he chuckled pathetically. "I don't know how, but she managed to make me think I didn't need my family, that they were just keeping us from being together like we wanted. Eventually, I started believing her, and after Dad said he'd arrest her, I packed my stuff, stole all the money I could find and split. I've been helping them arrange robberies and crap ever since."

He swallowed, squeezing away the tears that welled in his eyes.

"But then about a month ago, I started thinking how much I missed home, and that I didn't want to do that crap for the rest of my life. Lydia was also acting different, like she'd gotten what she'd wanted from me and didn't want to be around me anymore, unless there was no one else to fuck."

He shuddered, wishing he didn't have to say all this, but there was no point in hiding anything.

"That's about when I really started talking to Lilac, too, and she kept saying that I had a lot more than any of them ever did, and that I still had time to do something that mattered," he ran his paws down his limp ears. "I decided she was right, and then started thinking about how I was gonna split. I don't know how Lydia found out, but she obviously didn't like the idea."

He pushed his backpack further toward the larger male.

"I took some stuff I found in her room, I hope it helps make a case against her," he swiped at his eyes with the sleeve of his jacket. "I just want her to pay for what she almost did to my mom!"

He slumped to his knees in the chair, unable to hold it back any longer. The last thing he expected was to feel the weight of Anderson's paw across his back, or the sympathy he saw in the tiger's eyes when he looked up.

"The important thing is you got out of there and came forward with it," Tony assured him, then pulled away. "Considering what we just put you through, I'm not going to arrest you, but that doesn't mean you're getting off scot-free."

Julian shuddered, he didn't even want to know what his parents had in store for him.

* * *

The last thing Julian wanted right now was to face his siblings, and from the collective glares they sent his way as he and Lilac passed them in the waiting area, they felt the same way. Even worse were the disappointed looks on Uncle Ben's and Aunt Stephanie's faces, his gut twisting when they both turned away.

"God, I really fucked up," he ground the heels of his palms into his eyes.

"Yeah, you sure as hell did," Lilac agreed, flashing her badge to the llama at the front desk. He waved them on through without even glancing up from his computer screen. "It's going to take a long time for any of them to trust you again."

"If they ever do," he scoffed, his tail darting between his legs when he caught the first real dregs of his father's scent. He swallowed hard, his fur standing on end when he heard his mom talking to someone, but he didn't dare peek through her cracked open door to try and find out who. Instead, he dragged himself into one of the oversized chairs lined up along the opposite wall, his head hanging with his ears flopped over his face. "I'm such a dumbass!"

"Yes, but look on the bright side," the koala climbed up next to him. "Now you won't have to waste time making a huge mistake like this in the future, because you'll already have learned from it."

He barely glanced at her, she really had a weird way of trying to see the bright side.

"I guess so," he said lowly, his nose twitching as he picked up more snippets from his mother's conversation. It sounded like she was talking to the grandparents he and his siblings had never met. "I just can't believe they still want me back after all this…"

"Of course they do, Jun," Lilac took his chin and turned his face toward her. "They'll always love you, no matter how much stupid crap you pull."

He snorted, then pulled away from her. That was the last thing he wanted to think about now. He barely moved as the time dragged by, his heart nearly leaping from his throat when his mother suddenly called him.

"I know you're out there, Julian," she said. "You can come in now."

It took everything he had to not bolt the other way, barely able to control his shaking as he sidestepped past the heavy door, hating how small his mom looked in the crisp white sheets of her bed.

"Tony texted me a few minutes ago," she started flatly as he crept over. "I take it since you've given a statement against them, that you're done with Lydia and her gang?"

Jun had never nodded so hard in his life.

"I've wanted to come home for weeks," he admitted, glad to get at least a fraction of the suffocating weight off his chest. "But I thought you guys wouldn't want me back, and I didn't want to know what Lydia would do if I tried to split."

Judy pulled down the loosened collar of her spotted green hospital gown, a dark bruise showing through her fur.

"Officers Leafton and Dredger informed us that Lydia typically uses a gun to solve her problems, and we knew she wouldn't take your decision to leave lying down."

He cringed, his tail flicking nervously.

"She won't be able to get out of this," she went on. "I have body-cam footage recording the whole ordeal in the loft, and your father had quite a few things to say to her once she was in custody."

He gulped, not even wanting to think of what his dad would have in store for him. His mom smiled, even as her face twisted slightly in pain when she leaned forward, taking his shoulder.

"You've done a lot of growing up the last few months, Jun," she said. "And I think Nick will agree that having to live on the streets all that time is punishment enough."

"Maybe," Nick spoke up from the doorway. "I might be able to come up with something else, though, to make sure he's really learned his lesson."

Judy scoffed, but Jun missed what she said, his eyes locked on the fox.

"Dad…"

He couldn't get past the bandages on his father's face, the one peeking out from the sleeve of his ZPD T-shirt. He didn't try to fight the tears that welled up again, sprinting across the room and hugging the older male tightly.

"I-I'm sorry, Dad," he sobbed into Nick's chest. "I'm so sorry!"

He felt the bushy tail around his ankles, the firm paws on his shoulders, the light kiss to the top of his head.

"I know you are, son," Nick told him, his green eyes warm as always. "But I'm afraid you're still grounded."

"Nick—"

"No, Mom," Jun cut her off. "He's right. I stole from you guys, I ran away and made you all worry. This is the least I deserve."

"Right," Nick let go of him and stepped back, crossing his arms. "First, you can say goodbye to getting your permit, forget your license, and once your phone is released from evidence, you're not getting it back until you graduate."

That last part had to be an exaggeration, he hoped. He doubted he'd be able to do anything except call anyone with it, at least. But his father still wasn't done.

"We're also going to find you a job at the precinct, you'll be paying back every cent you took."

Jun winced, but stood tall. After all, he'd brought this on himself, and he wasn't about to cower away from it now. He actually managed to smirk.

"And I'm guessing I'll be stuck doing all the worst chores until college?"

Nick chuckled.

"Oh, big time."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And with that, I can now proudly say that the Secrets and Lies series is complete! Sure has been one hell of a ride, hasn't it?


End file.
